Monday, March 10, 2014

Godzilla, Rodan, Giant Ants, Mutant Spiders, Antibiotics and a Real Alert from the CDC!


What?
Stay with me for a moment.
Remember those good old horror flicks depicting large mutant creatures caused by radiation exposure, a demented scientist or a laboratory error?
Sure, they were silly, looked horribly fake and usually didn’t have great acting. 
Nowadays, people are engrossed with stories about mutants like zombies, X-Men, and the timeless characters of vampires and werewolves.  But what if the idea of mutants wasn’t so far-fetched?
So many in our society believe in the fantastical, but don’t give a second thought about the real monsters that put them and their families at grave risk.
Mutant bugs are real!  They happen to be very small, however.  Not the giant radioactive mutations of the movies.  You likely have heard of them.  Maybe you’ve even dismissed the thought of them.  They have been called “superbugs”.  A superbug is a bacterium that has become resistant to antibiotic drugs!  They are extremely dangerous, multiply, spread quickly and are deadly.
The uncontrolled misuse and abuse of antibiotics is the cause. 
Just think of an outbreak of these bugs invading our hospitals and clinics; taking up residence in our bodies and destroying them.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified “antibiotic resistance as one of the greatest threats facing human health.”
Do we need antibiotics?
Yes.  They can be life savers.
“Antibiotics save lives, but poor prescribing practices are putting patients at unnecessary risk for preventable allergic reactions, super-resistant infections, and deadly diarrhea.  Errors in prescribing decisions also contribute to antibiotic resistance, making these drugs less likely to work in the future.”-Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Superbugs are just another example of humans trying to solve one problem and creating another.  It’s not just the fantasy world of movies. 
We are creating monsters.  Small deadly monsters!
Partly because antibiotics are given to chickens and livestock causing superbugs in them that easily transfers to humans through food and water supplies.  Partly because people are demanding antibiotics from their doctors for any little sniffle, cough, congestion or sneeze they have.
Doctors are not taking control.  Some feel bullied by their patients because they are demanding the medication.  Well, who is in charge anyway?
Realize that antibiotics don’t work on:
·         Common cold
·         Influenza (flu)
·         Viral bronchitis
·         Measles
·         Chicken pox
·         Herpes
·         Mono (infectious mononucleosis)
They do work on:
·         Strep
·         E. Coli
·         Salmonella
·         Bacterial sinusitis
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is alarmed, issuing warnings and telling doctors they need to change their ways.  They say:
·         More than half of all hospital patients receive an antibiotic.
·         Doctors in some hospitals prescribed three times as many antibiotics as doctors in other hospitals.
·         Reducing the use of high-risk antibiotics by 30% can lower deadly diarrhea infections by 26%.
 
Some other staggering, alarming, scary statistics are:
·         23,000 Americans die each year due to antibiotic resistant bacterial infections.
·         25% of antibiotic prescriptions aren’t necessary (because the infection is viral).
·         One out of four times a doctor gives an antibiotic, it won’t help.
·         60% of the time, prescribed antibiotics are “broad spectrum” which kills good and bad bacteria.  Then superbugs can develop.
This is like dropping a nuclear bomb on Houston killing the bad and good people, resulting in mutant zombies.
What you can do:
Resist taking antibiotics.  Consider allowing your body to heal using natural remedies when possible.  It has everything it needs to heal, but may need a little help on a physiological level.  Nature provides great answers.  Drugs are derivatives and alterations of plants, herbs, etc.  So why not look to these first?  There’s no harm to your body and your better for it.
We carry many nutritional supplement products that are immune system builders as well as viral and bacterial fighters.  These natural remedies have been used long before I was born, by chiropractors, naturopaths, homeopaths, herbalists and holistic medical doctors.  They are clinically effective and safe.
Should you choose to take an antibiotic, ask your doctor.
·         Do I really need it?
·         How does he/she know what type of infection I have?
·         What are the consequences of taking or not taking the drug?
Remember that there are consequences to taking all medications.  Drugs are abundant and readily available (over the counter and prescribed), but it does not make them any less dangerous.  Be thoughtful and investigate any medication you use in or on your body. 
Wishing you a long, healthy and abundant life.
Blessings,
Dr. Rick Barrett
P.S.  General rule (not always accurate)…if you see…green and yellow phlegm (sputum), think bacterial infection (doesn’t mean you need an antibiotic).  Red/rust: viral…antibiotics don’t work.  Clear or white…antibiotics don’t work.  Allergies can also cause green/yellow mucus, sputum.  Culture will always give a definitive answer if you need it. 
Tip:  Keep your immune system strong to fight disease and infection! 

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