What are antibiotics? Know about Types and Uses
What Are Antibiotics?
Antibiotics are medications that help you fight bacterial infections and keep you healthy. They either kill or prevent bacteria from copying or reproducing.
Antibiotics mean "against life." So, any medicine that kills germs or microorganisms in your body is technically an antibiotic. However, the term primarily refers to medications that kill bacteria.
What Do Antibiotics Treat?
Antibiotics are medicines specifically designed to treat infections caused by harmful bacteria. They are effective against certain bacterial infections, such as strep throat, urinary tract infections, and E. coli.
However, it's essential to understand that antibiotics are not always necessary for treating bacterial infections. For example, many sinuses and some ear infections can resolve themselves without antibiotics. Taking antibiotics when not required can be ineffective and lead to unwanted effects.
It's always best to consult your doctor before considering antibiotics for your illness. Never use antibiotics unnecessarily or without a prescription.
How Do Antibiotics Work?
Antibiotics work in two main ways:
- Killing Bacteria: Some antibiotics, like Penicillin, kill bacteria by breaking down their cell contents or cell walls.
- Stopping Growth: Other classes of antibiotics prevent bacteria from multiplying or reproducing their new ones. Thus, these antibiotics further help your immune system fight off the infection.
It might take a few hours or even days after starting antibiotics before you start feeling better or see improvement in your symptoms.
Why is it important to take antibiotics when needed?
During a bacterial infection, you may be targeted by harmful bacteria that make you ill. Your body's immune system fails to fight them, and they keep multiplying and continue affecting your health. Even if not treated timely, bacterial infection can be life-threatening. So, experts examine your symptoms, and if you are dealing with a bacterial infection, they may prescribe antibiotics. These drugs effectively target the bacteria and kill them to help your immune system fight against them.
Also, antibiotics sometimes may lead to side effects and antibiotic resistance in some cases.
Types of Antibiotics:
There are various types of Antibiotics used to treat certain kinds of bacterial infections. Here are six categories in which different antibacterial drugs are usually grouped:
Penicillins
Penicillins help treat various infections, including chest, skin, and urinary tract infections (UTIs). Some examples of the penicillin class of antibiotics include amoxicillin, co-amoxiclav, flucloxacillin, and phenoxymethylpenicillin.
Cephalosporins
Cephalosporins, like antibiotics, may help treat many bacterial infections. Doctors may prescribe Cephalosporins for severe diseases like meningitis and septicaemia. Some examples include cefaclor, cefadroxil, and cefalexin.
Aminoglycosides
Doctors usually prescribe Aminoglycosides during severe illnesses, like septicaemia, treated in hospitals. Examples of Aminoglycosides include gentamicin and tobramycin.
Tetracyclines
Tetracyclines, like antibiotics, are commonly used to treat skin conditions like acne and rosacea. Some examples of Tetracyclines class of medicines include lymecycline, doxycycline, and tetracycline.
Macrolides
Doctors prescribe Macrolide antibiotics as an alternative to Penicillin to treat chest and lung infections. Some examples of Macrolide antibiotics include azithromycin, clarithromycin, and erythromycin.
Fluoroquinolones
Doctors prescribe Fluoroquinolones, including ciprofloxacin, levofloxacin, and norfloxacin, to treat various bacterial infections.
What Is Antibiotic Resistance?
As you have read, antibiotics are medicines that kill bacteria. However, some bacteria can adapt and change over time so that antibiotics no longer work against them. The condition when bacteria overcome the effects of antibiotics is called antibiotic resistance.
However, antibiotic resistance is a growing problem worldwide. It can make illnesses much more challenging to treat because the usual antibiotics no longer work, and other medicines might not help either. Certain factors, such as Misuse of antibiotic drugs, may lead to antibiotic resistance.
Side Effects of Antibiotics:
Usually, every class of antibiotic may have different side effects associated with them. But here are some of the most commonly seen side effects of antibiotic drugs:
Common side effects of Antibiotics:
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Upset stomach
- Nausea
- Rash
- Sensitivity to sunlight, especially when using Tetracyclines
- Also, prolonged use of certain antibiotics may lead to fungal infections of the mouth, digestive tract and vagina
Less common side effects of antibiotics include:
- Severe aches and pain when taking fluoroquinolones
- Low platelet count due to the use of cephalosporins and penicillins
- Formation of kidney stones due to the use of Sulfonamides
- Low granulocyte(a type of WBC) when taking Penicillin
- Hearing loss due to the use of macrolides or aminoglycosides
In some cases, older adults can develop C.difficile infection and may experience bowel inflammation, which leads to severe, bloody diarrhoea.
How to use Antibiotic Mediations:
Usually, Antibiotics are oral medicines taken orally. However, doctors can administer some antibiotics by injection or externally, such as topical ointments and creams, to treat the infection.
You can either take them after your meal or on an empty stomach. Your doctor will tell you how to take your antibiotic in your case. Antibiotics are prescription medicines; you should take them only when prescribed and in the dosage advised.
Doctors prescribe antibiotics to treat your infection. To completely kill bacteria, you must take the dosas promptly. Skipping or missing any dose and stopping the treatment without completing the course can leave the infection untreated. In such cases, bacteria may grow resistant to antibiotics or reinfect later if untreated. Some complete the entire course of treatment to ensure complete recovery; otherwise, the infection may become severe and more challenging to treat.
People taking antibiotics should follow these tips during treatment with them:
- Avoid consumption of alcohol while using Metronidazole.
- Do not use dairy products with tetracyclines, as these products may disrupt your body's absorption of medicine.
- Take your antibiotics promptly at fixed intervals, with exact dosage frequency, and complete the treatment course.
Antibiotic Interactions
When taking antibiotics, it is best to talk to your doctor before using other medicines. You should also inform your doctor whether you use herbal remedies, such as some over-the-counter (OTC) medicines.
While the use of certain antibiotics can reduce the effectiveness of birth control pills, research generally doesn't support this. In such cases, your doctor might recommend using additional contraceptive methods.
Doctors may also advise against drinking alcohol with certain antibiotics, like doxycycline. However, limiting alcohol consumption usually doesn't cause any risk with the most commonly used antibiotics. However, taking antibiotics cautiously and using them precisely as prescribed would be best to avoid possible interactions.
Final Lines-
Antibiotics are vital medications to combat bacterial infections by destroying bacteria or stopping them from growing or reproducing. The treatment of bacterial diseases requires careful consideration of antibiotics and their use. Misuse of antibiotics can lead to side effects and the risk of antibiotic resistance. When bacteria become resistant to antibiotics, then bacteria become immune to the effects of these drugs. During conditions like antibiotic resistance, infections become more challenging to treat. It's essential to use antibiotics like medicines only when a doctor prescribes them. Also, be aware of potential interactions with other medications or substances to ensure their effectiveness and safety.