Trust me, I'm a doctor. This is the first in what will be a regular column about health issues by Dr. Donald Misch, CU-Boulder's Senior Assistant Vice Chancellor of Health and Wellness and Executive Director of Wardenburg听Health Services on campus.
The approach of winter marks the onset of flu and cold season. It also provides an opportunity to talk about antibiotics, and what illnesses they can treat: hint,听not听the flu or the common cold.
Facts about antibiotics:
- Antibiotics are substances that kill or inhibit the growth of bacteria, parasites, and fungi, and should be taken to deal with bacterial infections such as strep throat.
- Antiviral medications such as Tamiflu are designed to combat viruses, which cause colds and flu.听Antibiotics are not effective in treating听these illnesses.听
- If you have a bacterial infection and are prescribed antibiotics, take as instructed and finish the entire course of antibiotics -听even if you feel better - to avoid antibiotic resistance.
- Excessive use and misuse of antibiotics contributes to antibiotic resistance,听a worldwide problem where some bacteria are able to survive exposure to antibiotics.
- At CU-Boulder we are concerned about sustainability and managing resources responsibility. Prudent use of听appropriate antibiotics to treat bacterial infections is a strategy to combat the growing problem of antibiotic resistance.
- Learn more about antibiotics from the听
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