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Antibiotics in Farm Animals Linked to Drug-Resistant Bacteria

By HERWriter
 
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The use of antibiotics in farm animals started out as a way of curbing disease among livestock, and of making animals grow bigger faster. It started out as a way of making the business more economical.

But it seems that the use of antibiotics in farm animals may have a higher cost in other areas. Overexposure to antibiotics through the food supply leaves us vulnerable to more antibiotic-resistant infections.

The Associated Press asserts that drug-resistant bacteria is regularly being found in meat sold in the U.S. "The report cites the widespread agricultural use, starting in the early 1990s, of a family of antibiotics that includes Cipro. Several years later, Cipro stopped working 80% of the time on deadly human infections it previously had cured."

The World Health Organization has cautioned for a number of years that this antibiotic use in farm animals is linked to drug-resistant bacteria affecting human beings. The European Union has banned the use of antibiotics in farm animals, unless it is to treat illness.

http://articles.latimes.com/2010/mar/13/opinion/la-ed-antibiotics13-2010mar13

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We value and respect our HERWriters' experiences, but everyone is different. Many of our writers are speaking from personal experience, and what's worked for them may not work for you. Their articles are not a substitute for medical advice, although we hope you can gain knowledge from their insight.

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