Use of antibiotics in farm animal feed is helping drive the
worldwide increase in antibiotic-resistant bacteria, researchers report.
"In
the fight against the rise of antibiotic resistance, we need to
understand that the use of one antibiotic or, in some cases,
antibacterial disinfectants may increase the abundance of
multidrug-resistant bacteria," said study leader James Tiedje. He is a
professor of microbiology and molecular genetics at Michigan State
University.
The
research team studied large-scale swine farms in China and a population
of pigs in the United States. The findings showed that
multidrug-resistant bacteria were the norm, not the exception, on farms
where antibiotics are used continuously in feed to promote growth and
prevent disease in animals.
"Tracking the source of antibiotic
resistance is quite complicated because antibiotic use, which increases
the occurrence of resistance, is widespread, and antibiotic resistance
can spread between bacteria," Tiedje added in a university news release.
The Chinese farms in the study were close to large cities, so
controlling antibiotic resistance in the pigs is important to minimize
the risk to people, Tiedje explained.
This is a global issue, not
an isolated Chinese issue, Tiedje said. "Multidrug resistance is just a
plane ride away. This is why our work in China is definitely as
relevant as in the United States," he said.
The findings were published online April 12 in the journal mBio.
Antibiotics
have been used so extensively that the bacteria they are intended to
kill have adapted to them, making the drugs less effective, health
experts say.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, at least 2 million Americans a year become infected with
antibiotic-resistant bacteria and at least 23,000 people die each year
as a result of these infections.
source-health.usnews
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