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Are Your Immune Defenses Ready? The Quiet Threat You Need to Know

AHA Publisher — Thu, 08 Oct 2020 07:00:22 +0000

Dr. Don Colbert – Since World War II, we’ve been in a battle with an enemy that’s growing in strength each year. Devastatingly, approximately 700,000 people die from antibiotic-resistant bacteria infections, or superbugs, every year worldwide. This includes 35,000 Americans (1). It’s an astounding number. Unfortunately, the current trend suggests it will only get worse especially if we continue to weaken our immune defenses on a personal basis and allow these infectious superbugs to spread throughout communities. What can be done? We can each invest in the health of our bodies and support our immune systems. Here’s how superbugs came to be, why their threat is growing, and what you can do specifically to bolster your immune defenses. The Story of Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria and Superbugs Soon after antibiotics became available and throughout World War II, scientists began to realize that antibiotic resistance could become a problem. Both British and American troops were given penicillin to fight infections during the war. To meet the demand, pharmaceutical companies ramped up production. About a year after the war ended, many experts began warning that penicillin could become useless if it continued to be over-used. Alexander Fleming, the physician-scientist who was recognized for discovering penicillin (2), warned that using non-lethal amounts of penicillin may allow bacteria to become resistant to it. In other words, bacteria may become stronger and adapt to antibiotics. If a low dose is taken, the antibiotics kill the weak bacteria, leaving only the strongest as survivors. Over time, new types of resistant bacteria could emerge and multiply. Once these bacteria infect a host, newer, different, and/or stronger antibiotics would be needed. Why It’s Still a Modern Global Threat At the time, scientists did not worry too much about the resistant bacteria. New strains of antibiotics were being produced, and they were optimistic they would be able to kill any bacterial threat with a different antibiotic. Unfortunately, Flemming’s warning was not heeded. Even now, antibiotic-resistant bacteria are not talked about much outside scientific circles. And, our lifestyles continue to enable the emergence of new strains and threats. Our overuse of antibiotics and antibacterial products allows the growth of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. In addition, our consumption of foods from livestock in which antibiotics have been used further destroys our own immune defenses and allows antibiotic-resistant bacteria to proliferate. Now, the World Health Organization projects as many as 10 million people per year may die from antibiotic-resistant by 2050 if current trends are sustained (3). The Threat to Your Immune Defenses In your own life, it may seem like your immune defenses are under attack from all sides. We have viruses, bacteria, and intolerances to contend with, and this is nothing new. Mankind has dealt with threats throughout human history. The difference with superbugs is that we may not have medications to fight them, and unlike many viruses, they don’t always just run their course. What can you do? It’s essential to stay as healthy as possible with lifestyle choices and habits. This can put your body in a position to fight microbes. How to Support a Healthy Immune Function There are 3 primary ways you can support your immune function. You can: 1. AVOID DETRIMENTAL LIFESTYLE HABITS, OVERUSE OF MEDICATION, AND TOXINS THAT HARM YOUR IMMUNE FUNCTION. Do you know what harms your immune system? Specific foods such as sugars, refined carbohydrates, modern gluten, those that cause intolerance and inflammation, processed fats, and more can harm your immune system. Sedentary lifestyles can reduce your immune response. Inadequate sleep and high levels of stress are detrimental to immune function. And, as described above, any overuse of antibiotics can harm your immune defenses and reduce your own healthy bacteria’s ability to fight for you. 2. DO YOUR VERY BEST TO MAINTAIN A HEALTHY WEIGHT, NORMALIZED BLOOD SUGARS, AND HEALTHY CARDIOVASCULAR FUNCTION. Unfortunately, overweight individuals are at a higher risk of abnormal blood sugars and cardiovascular issues. Both of these situations can increase the risk of infection and decrease the strength of immune defenses. It’s crucial to make lifestyle choices to support a healthy weight including reinforcing for the health of your digestive tract, cutting down on carbohydrates and sugars, and engaging in regular exercise. 3. SUPPORT HEALTHY IMMUNE FUNCTION DIRECTLY BY CARING FOR THE SPECIFIC ORGANS RESPONSIBLE FOR IT. There are specific organs and systems responsible for healthy immune function. Your digestive tract is vitally important to immune function. Your kidneys, liver, lungs, and lymph system are crucial. How can you keep them healthy? You can give them the nutrients they need like fibers, probiotics and prebiotics, antioxidants, anti-inflammations, and more to stay strong. Then, cut out the foods and habits that harm them like drinking alcohol, eating inflammatory fats, overusing antibiotics, and more. One great step to supporting all your immune system organs is joining Dr. Colbert’s 21 Day Detox and Fast. You can learn everything you need to remove the toxins that build up in our bodies and damage it while giving it the nutrients that support health. We Were Not Given a Spirit of Fear This is not intended to be a fear-inducing article, but timely information to encourage you to take charge of your health. We will have trouble in this world; we know that. There are many things that can attack us physically, spiritually, and mentally. However, we were not given a spirit of fear. We know we can meet challenges head-on, and that God has given us amazing bodies that can overcome the threats. He’s given us tools to keep our bodies healthy, and the desire to do so. You can do it. It’s time to work towards a healthy lifestyle, a healthy weight, and strong immune defenses. Bottom Line Superbugs and antibiotic-resistant bacteria are a real threat. They are nothing new, but with modern lifestyles they are becoming more powerful and more abundant. It’s vital to take control of your health and immune defenses. Join us in Dr. Colbert’s 21 Day Detox and Fast to learn what you can do to stay healthy, support immune health, and be ready for any microbial threat that comes your way. To read the original article click here. For more articles from Dr. Colbert click here.

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Newly Discovered Antibiotics Kill Bacteria Differently

AHA Publisher — Wed, 19 Feb 2020 08:00:37 +0000

Angela Betsaida B. Laguipo, BSN via News-Medical Net – Antibiotic resistance is a growing public health problem across the globe, with many diseases becoming harder to treat. Now, a newly discovered antibiotic group shows promise in the fight against superbugs as it has a unique way of killing bacteria. A team of scientists at McMaster University has found a new group of antibiotics that can fight infections in a new and unique way. These antibiotics fight infections in a way researchers have never seen before, according to the findings of the study described in the journal Nature. ‘Holy Grail’ of Antibiotics The newly found group of antibiotics, consisting of corbomycin and complestatin, can kill bacteria by blocking the function of the bacterial cell wall. These drugs come from a family of antibiotics known as glycopeptides, which are produced by soil bacteria. The two antibiotics attack peptidoglycan, the main component of the bacterial cell wall that is vital to the growth and survival of almost all bacteria. They inhibit the action of autolysins, which are important for cell division and growth. Other antibiotics, such as penicillin, work by preventing the bacteria from building its wall, which is the source of its strength. In killing the bacteria, removing its wall will make it vulnerable and easier to kill. These new antibiotics work by doing the opposite. Instead of preventing building the wall, it halts the wall ll from being broken down. As a result, blocking the breakdown of the wall would make it impossible for them to divide and expand – just like being trapped in prison. Unique Bacteria Killer The two new antibiotics are known as glycopeptides. The team studied the genes of the group to see if they lack resistance mechanisms. The team believes that if the genes that made these drugs different, perhaps the way they kill will also be different. In collaboration with scientists from the Université de Montréal, including Yves Brun, they found that the drugs act on the bacterial cell wall to prevent it from dividing and proliferating. “Knowing the detailed structure at the atomic level of this connection between the surface layer and the surface of the cell offers enormous potential to then develop molecules that can target this attachment and make the cell more sensitive to antibacterials,” Yves Brun, study co-author, said. “Combined with the discovery of the new mode of action of two antibiotics, this development opens up prospects for weakening the action of bacteria and making them more vulnerable,” he added. The researchers believe the group of drugs is a promising clinical candidate in the hopes of stemming bacteria from becoming resistant to antibiotics. Fight Against Antibiotic Resistance Antibiotic resistance is one of the greatest threats to global health, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Though it happens naturally, the misuse of antibiotics is hastening the process, making it easy to treat infections in the past harder to curb now. Further, antibiotic resistance increase hospital stays and medical costs. For instance, diseases in the past that were responsive to certain antibiotics may become resistant and difficult to stem, such as tuberculosis, pneumonia, gonorrhea, and other infections. Now, as the diseases become stronger and more resilient, outbreaks may become inevitable, unless new drugs are discovered. In the United States alone, at least 2.8 million people become infected with antibiotic-resistant bacteria each year, while more than 35,000 people die. To read the original article click here.

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Stopping Superbugs in 4 Steps

AHA Publisher — Wed, 02 Oct 2019 07:00:38 +0000

Kissairis Munoz via Dr. Axe – When someone is treated (or overtreated, as is often the case) with antibiotics, good bacteria are eliminated along with the bad. While sometimes antibiotics are necessary to eliminate diseases, if too much of the healthy bacteria that your body needs are wiped out by them, bad bacteria are able to survive, reproduce and, eventually, become immune to the very drugs meant to eradicate them. Have you heard of superbugs? No, they’re not a new horror movie franchise — they’re even more frightening. Superbugs are bacteria that have become resistant to antibiotics, and when treated with the medicines, instead of being wiped out and stopping superbugs, they multiply and thrive. And these superbugs aren’t just a nuisance – they’re on the cusp of becoming a full-blown public health problem. A recent report warns that if superbugs aren’t stopped in their tracks now, the repercussions are high. These nasty bacteria will be linked to the deaths of 10 million people a year by 2050. That’s one person every three seconds. What’s the Story Behind Superbugs? Superbugs were born out of the ashes of the bacteria antibiotics killed. Survival of the fittest? They’ve got it down pat. Superbugs have evolved to be resistant to the very medicines that were created to kill them and even other versions. Some bacteria, for instance, are not only resistant to penicillin, but also to several variations of the antibiotic. (1) In the U.S., drug-resistant superbugs infect more than 2 million people and kill at least 23,000 each year. (2) Tuberculosis, gonorrhea and pneumonia are all some of the types of diseases that can now survive antibiotic treatment. While it might seem that antibiotics have been around forever, they’re fairly recent as far as scientific developments go. It wasn’t until 1928 that Alexander Fleming accidentally discovered penicillin. As the “magic” of antibiotics was recognized, diseases that were once a definite death sentence, like malaria and polio, were now treatable. But as antibiotics became ubiquitous, they started being prescribed for conditions that can be treated via other methods because they work quickly. Then people began taking them for ailments that, by definition, antibiotics can’t help – you won’t recover from the common cold any quicker, for instance, with antibiotics, because antibiotics are useless against viral infections. (3) How Superbugs Came to Be Overprescribing antibiotics, combined with skipping doses, sharing antibiotics, not taking medicines at regular intervals as indicated and “saving some for later” are all leading to antibiotic resistance, as superbugs are created. When someone is treated (or overtreated, as is often the case) with antibiotics, good bacteria are eliminated along with the bad. While sometimes antibiotics are necessary to eliminate diseases, if too much of the healthy bacteria that your body needs are wiped out by them, bad bacteria are able to survive, reproduce and, eventually, become immune to the very drugs meant to eradicate them. In 2014, the World Health Organization released its first report on antibiotic resistance. It revealed that “this serious threat is no longer a prediction for the future, it is happening right now in every region of the world and has the potential to affect anyone, of any age, in any country.” (4) As a result, the U.K. established the Review on Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR). The independent body was set up to analyze the problem and propose solutions to combat antimicrobial resistance on a global scale. The results were grim. The AMR study, released in May 2016, found that without a plan that incorporates international cooperation, the world would be “cast back into the dark ages of medicine.” (5) The report highlighted the supply and demand problem that currently exists globally. The supply of new medicines is not enough to keep up with the increase in drug resistance, as older medicines that had been taken off the market are now being used more widely and microbes have evolved to resist them. At the same time, the study maintains, the demand for the medicines is very badly managed, with large amounts of antibiotics wasted globally on patients and animals who do not need them, which limits availability for those who can be truly helped by them. The Superbug Threat Right on the heels of the report’s release, a woman in the U.S. was found to be infected with bacteria that’s resistant to colistin. (6) This is significant because colistin is an antibiotic that was first released in 1959 but, in the 1980s, was abandoned because it was found to be toxic to the kidneys. (7) Once antibiotic-resistant superbugs arrived on the scene, colistin and other drugs that were once deemed too dangerous were pulled off the shelves and used as last-resort drugs to treat patients who are immune to other drugs. Now, it seems that the superbugs have found a way to flourish even when being treated with these harsh antibiotics. The incident likely isn’t isolated. On May 26, 2016, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services revealed that colistin-resistant bacteria had been found in an American pig. (8) As we know, we are what the animals we eat, well, eat. And while I don’t advocate eating pork, the truth of the matter is that much of the livestock raised in the U.S. is overtreated with antibiotics. It’s certainly scary to think that if we become seriously ill, the very treatments that should be helping us can be doing more harm than good. Luckily, it’s not all doom and gloom. The AMR report makes some excellent suggestions for stopping superbugs and reducing antibiotic resistance. It specifically calls out that there needs to be a concerted, international effort to reduce our over-reliance on antibiotics: Fundamental change is required in the way that antibiotics are consumed and prescribed, to preserve the usefulness of existing products for longer and to reduce the urgency of discovering new ones. Governments should be held accountable on this goal to reduce the demand for antimicrobials and in particular antibiotics, as should the main sectors that drive antibiotic consumption: healthcare systems, the pharmaceutical industry and the farming and food production industry. In plain terms, that means the doctors overprescribing these antibiotics, the pharmaceutical companies pushing for sales and the food industries that pump their animals with unnecessary drugs need to be held responsible for their actions. But as someone looking out for your family, is there anything you can do to help loosen the grip of antibiotics and reduce the risk of superbugs taking hold? Absolutely, you can take steps toward stopping superbugs from becoming an even greater epidemic. Stopping Superbugs Here are four keys for stopping superbugs: 1. Reduce Reliance on Antibiotics While sometimes antibiotics are necessary and lifesaving, they shouldn’t be the first line of defense. They should be used as a last-resort option. Unless essential, I encourage you to explore the many natural, non-toxic ways to treat different ailments and conditions, from natural remedies to essential oils. 2. Use Antibiotics the Right Way If the occasion arises when antibiotics are necessary, take them properly. Take the full, prescribed course as directed. Don’t save medication for later or share with other people. 3. Don’t Skip Out on Proper Hygiene Use good, old-fashioned soap and water – not antibacterial soaps! – to wash your hands frequently. Avoid close contact with people who are sick to reduce your risk of getting a bacterial infection. If you’re the sick person, think of those around you. Stay home from school or work, and allow yourself to recover so you don’t put others at risk. 4. Avoid Factory-Farmed Meats Because so many antibiotics are given to animals, it’s important to choose the highest-quality meats you can find. Opt for organic when possible and speak to local butchers at your farmer’s market to find out how the livestock is raised and how they’re treated when ill. What the animals you eat have in their bodies is critical – after all, it will be in yours next. Expect to see a lot more in the news about superbugs in the coming years. While measures also need to be taken at the government level, we can all do our part in keeping our families a little safer and stopping superbugs from multiplying. To read the original article click here. For more articles by Dr. Axe click here.

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