Antibiotics: All You Need to Know

Antibiotics: how they work?

Antibiotics are special substances of biological origin that can suppress the growth of viruses, bacteria and microorganisms or completely destroy them. The specificity of antibiotics action is the main feature. That is, each specific type of pathogen microorganisms is susceptible not to every type of antibiotics. This feature is the basis of the main modern antibiotics classification: narrow-spectrum antibiotics (suppress the vital activity of bacteria of one type) and broad-spectrum antibiotics (destroy various types of microorganisms). You may buy antibiotics online at XL Pharmacy Team  at reasonable price and convenient conditions (Amoxicillin, Zithromax, Cipro, Tetracycline and many others).

Antibiotics are designed to help a person overcome the infection, but it is very important not to cause additional harm to your health. Uncontrolled intake of such drugs is unacceptable, as it may have serious complications. Antibiotics should be prescribed by a doctor and taken under his strict control.

When it is necessary to use an antibiotic?

Antibiotic is a drug which kills bacteria. Therefore, an indication for their use is the presence of a pathological process in the organism, caused by bacteria. In extremely rare cases and on doctor’s advice, antibiotics can be used as a preventative measure.

Before prescribe antibiotics, you must make sure that the disease is caused by bacteria, not by other microorganisms. Most often, a usual general blood analysis helps find it out – the number of white blood cells increases in case of a bacterial infection. But sometimes it is required to determine not only the presence of bacteria, but their specific form for more precise selection of antibiotics and more effective treatment. Doctors usually conduct additional examinations that allow to determine bacteria types.

Usually, antibiotics are used for the treatment of:

• Bacterial pneumonia;
• infections of the genitourinary system;
• purulent inflammation of the skin;
• sexually transmitted infections.

But many people practice antibiotics therapy for any colds that is fundamentally wrong. Any cold is a severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), caused by viruses, which antibiotics do not affect in any way.

When antibiotics are not necessary

Most people are fans of self-treatment. At the same time, they just can not explain what antibiotic is and believe that it is just a strong medicine that treat everything. That is why they often prescribe antibiotics themselves when these drugs are not necessary at all. The most common situations are high temperature treatment, SARS and prophylactic administration.

Increased body temperature is a unique defensive reaction of the organism, it can be caused by both viral or bacterial infections, an autoimmune process, tumors and even simple exhaustion. Therefore, you can’t just start taking an antibiotic when the temperature rises, there is a small possibility of a bacterial infection, sensitive to the drug, and the list of antibiotics side effects is rather big. Higher temperatures may be reduced bu antipyretic drugs, not antibiotics.

Antibiotics and microflora

You already know that the basis of antibiotics action is the suppression and destruction of microorganisms. Our organism together with its microflora form a stable homeostasis. Thus, quality of our life is regulated by the balance of all these processes. Any antibiotic is an inhibitor suppressing chemical reactions including beneficial microbes, which adversely affects the homeostasis.

In simple words, antibiotics provide a kind of temporary sterility. In this environment, none microorganism can survive except pathogenic microbes, and this can lead to the development of numerous pathologies. It is a mistake to believe that the microflora is able to quickly recover from such an impact. That is why our doctors, prescribing antibiotics to patients, also prescribe drugs supporting the intestinal microflora.

Antibiotics safe in pregnancy?

Antibiotics during pregnancy is quite complicated and controversial topic. Of course, you know that it’s generally undesirable for women to take any medicines in this period, but what if the body has to deal with a serious infection that threatens the fetus? XL Pharmacy professional team does not recommend antibiotic treatment for pregnant women without serious evidence for antibiotics need. These may be sexual infections, pyelonephritis, pneumonia, etc.

Prescribing antibiotics, doctors must take the period of gestation into account. It is undesirable to use antibiotics in the first trimester, when there is a formation of the vital organs of the fetus. In this case, antibacterial agents can damage organs and functions of the child, causing birth defects. If the treatment of the mother is necessary, physicians should provide strict control over the treatment process to remove the drug in the event of the slightest complications.

If you had to take a course of antibiotics before pregnancy, but you want to conceive, it is better to postpone pregnancy for two or three months. However, if the pregnancy is unplanned, do not worry: antibiotics taken before the delay of menstruation are unlikely to adversely affect the health of your child.

How to take antibiotics without harm to health?

Antibiotic is not a candy, but a serious medication that can cause very serious consequences:

• Allergic reactions;
• problems with the gastrointestinal tract;
• kidneys problems;
• liver functions violation;
• intestinal dysbiosis (a frequent antibiotics side effect);
• neurological disorders (less common antibiotics side effect).

* XL Pharmacy reminds, usually unpleasant consequences occur not because of the low quality drug or a bad doctor, but because the patient takes antibiotics in a wrong manner.

To avoid most antibiotics side effects, follow the doctor’s recommendations and instructions for use.

In case of any allergic reactions it is necessary to discontinue treatment and look for other options.

Treatment of dysbiosis is often carried out with probiotics. But in fact it is not necessary in most cases – as a rule patients just need a correct nutrition to cope with this problem.

Warning:

• You can not sunbathe during Tetracycline therapy and 2 weeks after the end of the course;
• you can’t paint or curl hair during and after antibiotics course;
• tetracyclines, penicillins and rifampin reduce the effectiveness of oral contraceptives;
• blood thinners are not taken simultaneously with antibiotics of penicillin and cephalosporin groups to avoid bleeding.

If you take the appropriate antibiotic and follow all the rules, the harm from the drug will be minimal and treatment will be quick and easy.

* Aviod antibiotics overuse.

You must consult your doctor immediately in the following cases:

• Antibiotics cause allergic reactions;
• there is no health improvement;
• new pathological symptoms.

So, you can see, antibiotics are quite “treacherous” drugs. On the one hand, you can’t go without them, but on the other – it’s very difficult to recover after treatment. If you have an urgent need and your doctor prescribed a particular antibiotic to you, follow all the doctor’s directions and do not stop treatment even if you notice rapid improvement.