Do watch this video on an experiment by Harvard Medical School on how quickly bacteria becomes antibiotic resistant. They mutate, evolve and become so strong that even the most powerful of antibiotics can't defeat them!
And I am speaking from experience. When Cass was put on prophylactic antibiotics EVERY DAY since she was only a fragile 6-week old infant, the antibiotics did not work on preventing a UTI (Urinary Tract Infection). Despite taking antibiotics every day, she would get a UTI attack once every 3 weeks. Every single month. This went on until she was strong enough for a surgery at 13 months old weighing a mere 8kg. I went through many nightmares with Cass when her doctors told me that the sensitivity test report showed that no safe antibiotics were suitable for her. The bacteria had evolved into mutants, resisting even strong antibiotics. Imagine, if a doctor tells you that your child has an infection that no safe antibiotics could cure. What would you do? How would you feel? I can still remember my exact feelings on those cold nights in the hospital staring blankly at the sensitivity test report with my doctor sitting next to us and scratching his head trying to find a solution to treat Cass. How did Cass and I even survive those days? I can only pray that we will never have to go through those harrowing moments again, ever.
And that is why I am doing all that I possibly can to prevent another UTI from attacking Cass. Ever since she had a UTI attack in November last year, she's had a series of mild UTI attacks. When she had quite a bad UTI attack in November last year, she was put on strong antibiotics via IV for 5 days and another 7 days of oral antibiotics. The after-effects of antibiotics on the body is really damaging. Cass' immune system was weakened. I am very sure that the antibiotics did not completely kill all the resistant bacteria (and they multiply when conditions are conducive), thus the series of mild UTI attacks every 3-6 weeks, post November 2015.
Cass is now under a very 'controlled' lifestyle by me. She drinks Izumio hydrogen water 3 times a day, pops 1-2 Super Lutein capsules every day, pops a potent probiotics once or twice a day, drinks boiled barley and Job's Tears water every other day, coconut water every other day and I limit her intake of acidic food. She also drinks Waterfall D-Mannose every four hourly. Sweets and junk food are banned. Sweet food is limited. Sugar and refined flour products only feed the bacteria, as with an acidic environment. Food that I cook is less sodium, less sugar and less oil. I try to avoid using bottled sauces with preservatives, coloring and other harmful chemicals. She has to pee every hourly. And the toughest part is waking her up at 2am every single day to bring her to pee. Drinking lots of clear liquid and peeing is key to flushing out the bacteria, NOT antibiotics.
Watching this stunning video of disease will surely bring pandemic movies like “Contagion” and “Outbreak” to mind. A Harvard Medical School study tested the strength of bacteria against powerful antibiotics on a “mega-plate” petri dish. And guess who lives in the end?
In the experiment, bacteria is placed on the sides of a petri dish and then advances to the center as it encounters different types of antibiotics, each more powerful than the last. The scientists created a time-lapse video to show its rapid evolution over the course of two weeks. You can see the bacteria (in white) as it fights through layers of antibiotics, multiplying and morphing as it spreads. Over the course of time, the superbugs become impervious to drugs and not only survive, but also thrive as they increase in size and strength. It shows how antibiotics are truly powerless against mighty evolution.
The experiment is one of the first large-scale looks at the evolution of bacteria (or, arguably, of life) and how even our most powerful drugs can’t kill germs. Which leaves us with only one conclusion: This is both really cool and totally unnerving.
A new experiment shows how bacteria can fight it's way through antibiotics. Photo Credit Scharvik/iStock/Getty Images
Video and article, courtesy of Livestrong.com
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