WHO cautions about failure of Antibiotics

A report released by World Health Organisation (WHO) has stated some shocking facts. According to it, antibiotics that are currently in clinical development are insufficient to combat the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance. Most of the drugs currently in the clinical phase are modifications of existing classes of antibiotics and are only short-term solutions. There are, however, very few potential treatment options. “There is an urgent need for more investment in research and development for antibiotic-resistant infections including TB, otherwise we will be forced back to a time when people feared common infections and risked their lives from minor surgery,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of WHO said. Besides TB, the WHO has also identified 12 classes of priority pathogens – including common infections like pneumonia or urinary tract infections – that are increasingly resistant to existing antibiotics and urgently in need of new treatments. Among the newly identified 51 new antibiotics and biologicals in clinical development, only eight are classed by WHO as innovative treatments that will add value to the current antibiotic treatment arsenal, it said. “Pharmaceutical companies and researchers must urgently focus on new antibiotics against certain types of extremely serious infections that can kill patients in a matter of days because we have no line of defence,” noted Suzanne Hill, Director of the Department of Essential Medicines at WHO. To keep ourselves protected this flu season, what we can probably start doing is to boost our immunity with natural ingredients through our diet. Here are some immunity boosting foods – Broth-based soup: Chicken noodle soup can actually help soothe a cold and boost immunity. The chicken contains an amino acid called cysteine, which helps thin mucus in the lungs, and the hot broth helps to keep nasal passages moist, prevent dehydration and fight inflammation in the throat.