Antibiotics how do they work

Only substances that target bacteria are called antibiotics, while the name antimicrobial is an umbrella term for anything that inhibits or kills microbial cells including antibiotics, antifungals, antivirals and chemicals such as antiseptics. Most antibiotics used today are produced in laboratories, but they are often based on compounds scientists have found in nature.

Some microbes, for example, produce substances specifically to kill other nearby bacteria in order to gain an advantage when competing for food, water or other limited resources. However, some microbes only produce antibiotics in the laboratory. Antibiotics are used to treat bacterial infections. Some are highly specialised and are only effective against certain bacteria. Others, known as broad-spectrum antibiotics, attack a wide range of bacteria, including ones that are beneficial to us.

There are two main ways in which antibiotics target bacteria. They either prevent the reproduction of bacteria, or they kill the bacteria, for example by stopping the mechanism responsible for building their cell walls. Erythromycin, which is commonly used to treat respiratory tract and skin infections, is a macrolide. Quinolones include antibiotics like ciprofloxacin and levofloxacin, which are used to treat infections like bronchitis and pneumonia.

When bacteria begin to copy their DNA, quinolones cause the strands to break and then prevent the breaks from being repaired. Without intact DNA, bacteria cannot live or reproduce. When you take an antibiotic, it enters your bloodstream and travels through your body, killing bacteria but not human cells.

There are few differences, however, between harmful and friendly bacteria. Antibiotics kill not only the bad bacteria making you sick, but also your resident friendly bacteria.

Friendly bacteria help keep you healthy in many ways, so when antibiotics kill friendly bacteria, your health can suffer because you lose these benefits. Additionally, losing friendly bacteria can give other types of bacteria room to multiply, leading to opportunistic infection. Sometimes opportunistic infection happens when bacteria from the environment get into your body and overrun friendly bacteria damaged by an antibiotic.

Other times opportunistic infection begins when antibiotics disturb the balance of your resident microbes, and normally friendly bacteria multiply too quickly and become harmful.

Like many opportunistic bacteria, C. However, certain groups of people, like older adults who have been on antibiotics for a long time, are vulnerable. When antibiotics kill too many friendly bacteria in the intestine, C. When you take antibiotics often or for long periods of time, your risk for long-term health effects increases. Simply upsetting the balance of resident microbes can have a complex impact on your health that goes beyond increasing your vulnerability to opportunistic infections.

The good news is healthy people who take infrequent, short courses of antibiotics usually recover quickly. These bacteria often have unique characteristics that prevent antibiotics from working on them. The overgrowth of this type of bacteria causes infection in both your small and large intestines. These bacteria often infect your bloodstream, urinary tract, or surgical wounds.

This infection typically occurs in people who are hospitalized. Enterococci infections may be treated with the antibiotic vancomycin, but VRE is resistant to this treatment. This type of infection is resistant to traditional staph infection antibiotics. MRSA infections typically occur on your skin. This class of bacteria are resistant to a lot of other antibiotics. CRE infections typically occur in people in hospitals and who are on a mechanical ventilator or have indwelling catheters.

The most important cause of antibiotic resistance is inappropriate use or overuse of antibiotics. As much as 30 percent of antibiotic use is thought to be unnecessary.

Antibiotics are used for treating infections caused by bacteria. Your healthcare provider will evaluate your symptoms and conduct a physical exam to determine the cause of your infection. In some cases, they may request a blood or urine test to confirm the cause of infection. Most antibiotics have similar side effects. Perhaps the most common side effect is gastrointestinal GI upset, including:.

In some cases, these side effects can be reduced if you take the antibiotic with food. However, some antibiotics must be taken on an empty stomach.

Ask your doctor or pharmacist about the best way to take your antibiotic. GI upset usually goes away after you stop treatment. Also, call your doctor if you develop:. Antibiotics are most effective when used appropriately. This starts with ensuring that you really need the antibiotic.

Only use antibiotics prescribed by your doctor for a bacterial infection. Talk with your doctor or pharmacist about the best way to take your antibiotic.

Some should be taken with food to reduce side effects but others need to be taken on an empty stomach. Antibiotics should also be taken in the prescribed amount and for the directed length of treatment. You might feel better within a few days after starting the antibiotic but you should talk with your healthcare provider before stopping your treatment early. Are you taking antibiotics and wondering if you can drink alcohol? Mixing alcohol and certain antibiotics can cause severe nausea, vomiting, and….

If you've ever been prescribed antibiotics, you've likely been told that it may make your birth control less effective. Here's what the research says. Experts say some antibiotics can kill healthy gut bacteria.