02/25/2026
Take a flyswatter camping
Treating infections by killing all of the bugs is like "taking a flyswatter camping". You can only kill so many bugs, but there are always more.
Louis Pasteur was a pharmacist and microbiologist that developed the germ theory. He revolutionized the world's view of disease by helping us understand infectious disease and micro-organisms. However, he believed that we need to sterilized to overcome "bad" bacteria. This is where we get milk pasteurization.
Claude Bernard was a scientist from the same era that argued that in order to overcome an infection, the body must be strong and homeostasis must take place.
The two argued for years but eventually Pasteur admitted that Bernard was right.
While antibiotics are very important and useful, the body's immune response must, in the end, win the battle for you.