7 Negative Effects of Antibiotics on Your Health ...

By Chelsie

Antibiotics can be lifesaving in the case of serious infections; however, despite the benefits of these medications, there are negative effects of antibiotics. It is now very common for people to receive a course of antibiotics when they are feeling sick. In fact, receiving antibiotics has become so common that in 2010 there were 258 million prescriptions written for antibiotics in the United States. With so many prescriptions being written, it would seem as if antibiotics were completely safe; however, there are negative effects of antibiotics that you should be aware of.

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1

Obesity

One of the more surprising negative effects of antibiotics is they increase the risk of developing obesity. Dr. Martin J. Blaser is an infectious disease specialist who has discovered that taking antibiotics early in life makes people more likely to weigh more. While this is initially shocking, when you consider the fact that industrial raised animals are given low doses of antibiotics to make them fatter, it isn’t quite as surprising. If antibiotics can make animals weigh more, why not people?

2

Asthma

Broad spectrum antibiotics can wipe out many bacteria, including H. pylori. While H. pylori is considered a bad bacteria, it is a bacteria that used to present in almost everyone’s stomach, and it has some surprising benefits. H. pylori appears to suppress immune responses, making people 30 percent less likely to develop asthma.

3

Heartburn

H. pylori also seems to have protective qualities against acid reflux. Researchers have discovered that people without H. pylori are much more likely to develop acid reflux, because H. pylori helps regulate the amount of acid in the stomach. While H. pylori does have beneficial effects, it is important to keep in mind it has also been linked to stomach cancer. This presents a catch 22 regarding H. pylori, but it also points out that taking antibiotics can have some unintended consequences, such as acid reflux.

4

Diabetes

Early research indicates that receiving antibiotics early in life increases the risk of developing Type I Diabetes. Antibiotics kill the beneficial bacteria in the intestines, and this seems to alter the way the immune system develops. As a result, receiving antibiotics increases the chance of developing Type I Diabetes, where the immune system mistakenly attacks the pancreas. Since the pancreas is where insulin is made, people with Type 1 Diabetes cannot make insulin.

5

Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) causes chronic inflammation in the digestive tract and can be very debilitating. Danish researchers have discovered that children with IBD were 84 percent more likely to have been given antibiotics before getting IBD. By killing the good bacteria in the intestines, antibiotics appear to put people at a greater risk for developing IBD.

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6

Celiac Disease

Diagnosis of celiac disease has quadrupled since the 1950s, in part because of increased antibiotic use. When researchers analyzed data from a Switzerland health study, they found that people who recently developed celiac disease were 40 percent more likely to have received antibiotics before their diagnosis. This discovery demonstrates an association between antibiotic use and celiac disease.

7

Antibiotic Resistant Infections

Taking antibiotics puts people at an increased risk for developing antibiotic resistant infections. One example of an antibiotic resistant infection is C. diff, which can occur when antibiotics wipe out the good bacteria in your intestines and C. diff becomes overpopulated. C. diff causes antibiotic resistant diarrhea and can be deadly. Knowing the serious risks of antibiotic resistant infections is one reason to be cautious with antibiotics.

Because antibiotics can be lifesaving, they play an important role in healthcare. However, since antibiotics do have negative health consequences, it is wise to reserve them for when they are really needed. Did you know antibiotics could have negative health consequences?

Source: Blaser, Martin J. Missing Microbes: How the Overuse of Antibiotics is Fueling our Modern Plagues. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 2014. Print.

Feedback Junction

Where Thoughts and Opinions Converge

I had to be treated for an H. pylori infection. It was the worst stomach pain I've ever felt. I couldn't leave my house from the pain. H. pylori is a spiral bacteria that burrows into the mucosa where stomach acid cannot reach it to destroy it. it can result in painful ulcers like it did with me. you'll definitely want the antibiotics to treat it when it hurts that bad!

please do paraphrase one article in one medical journal, by one doctor. people read these articles and trust what they are reading. stick to fashion and celebs...you have no business giving a "medical" opinion.

I was on an antibiotic for my acne for years. I had such heartburn I'd feel like I was having a heart attack or something. Once I've stopped taking them it went away.

*do not

the author of this article was an art history major. I feel like she had no business touching this subject!

Antibiotics in too large a quantity can be EXTREMELY damaging to your health. I have recently recovered from years of illness due to antibiotics given for chronic sinus infections and very well could have died from the damage. It does not take a medical degree to have knowledge about this kind of thing. More people should know about the risks of medications like this before they take it I fully support this article!!!

iliveparis624 you are sooo right! one source is not enough. also if you aren't a doctor, you shouldn't be providing ANY medical advice. I'm a pharmacist and not all of this is true...

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