Haberl 1
Casey Haberl
Gayle March
English Composition 1
10/23/2013
Cause or Effect Essay
Antibiotic Resistance
The majority of us have most likely been prescribed an antibiotic at some point in our
lives for an illness, but many don’t truly understand them. About twenty-two percent of people
don’t finish a prescription antibiotic, because they find themselves feeling better before finishing
all of the pills (Aldridge). No one ever seems to wonder why their doctor prescribes so many
pills for them when they don’t seem to need all of them. People just assume that they can stop
taking them. Although, many don’t bother to do their research about it, there has to be a reason
that doctors prescribe so many pills. People should always finish taking all of the antibiotics
prescribed to them because if they don’t it could possibly have negative effects on the persons
health, including what is called antibiotic resistance.
Antibiotic resistance happens when a person misuses the antibiotic prescribed to them
(Antibiotic Resistance). This same article tells that sometimes the misuse of an antibiotic is the
doctors’ fault. This is because they are only effective for bacterial infections, not viral infections
because bacterial infections are stronger. Sometimes doctors’ can mistake which type of
infection the person has, and prescribe an antibiotic when it is really unnecessary. A recent study
showed that about sixty percent of sore throats are treated by an antibiotic but very few are cured
by the antibiotic because it is meant to treat strep throat, not just the typical sore throat (Samadi).
The same article states, “Many doctors have also made a habit of prescribing antibiotics because
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of a lack of knowledge about antibiotic resistance, as well as a precautionary effort to
overmedicate their patients.” Another point made by Dr. Samadi is that antibiotics are becoming
not as effective as they once were. Doctors’ are prescribing them when they are unnecessary
causing people to overuse them which is making the infections less vulnerable to the medication.
Samadi states that, “U.S. doctors are prescribing enough antibiotics to give them to four out of
five Americans every year.”
The other, more common way a person can misuse an antibiotic is by not taking it
correctly (Antibiotic Resistance). The number of pills that come with the prescription is the
number that it takes to completely kill the bacteria that has taken over a persons’ body.
According to Antibiotic Resistance, “When an antibiotic prescription is not finished (even
leaving one or two pills), it leaves some bacteria alive and ‘resistant’ to future antibiotic
treatment.” What this means, is that if you don’t finish all of the pills, the bacteria can still be in
your body and could possibly come back. Also, if it does come back, you may end up feeling
even worse than you did the previous time you had the illness. Not only that, but the antibiotic
may not work because it built up a resistance to the pill the last time you took it.
One major factor that could potentially stop antibiotic resistance is learning when a
person should be taking an antibiotic and when they should not. This is difficult because many
different kinds of infections show very similar symptoms, but not all are bacterial infections
which require antibiotics. According to Samadi, “Viral infections are often characterized by the
presence of low grade fever and sore throat.” Unfortunately, with this type of infection there isn’t
much a doctor can do to make a patient feel better right away. An antibiotic cannot kill this type
of infection so the body has to fight the illness by itself. The article also explains that bacterial
infections are much stronger than viral infections. Bacterial infections tend to have some
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different and more severe symptoms such as, “high fever – and along with the throat being red or
swollen.” If a person has these symptoms or the symptoms of strep throat, they should be tested
and possibly be treated with an antibiotic.
Many people do not finish an antibiotic that was prescribed to them, or they take
antibiotics when it really is not necessary because they don’t fully understand them. When
people get sick, their first thought tends to be that they need some sort of antibiotic to make
themselves feel better and they don’t realize that is not always the case. If people did their
research they may realize that they should take all of the pills that come with the prescription, or
maybe an antibiotic is not the right treatment for their illness. If antibiotics were taken properly,
they would be more effective and antibiotic resistance may not be as big of an issue as it is.
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Works Cited
Aldridge, Shanita. Antibiotic Resistance. Antibiotics & Their Resistance. 1st ed. Delhi:
Learning P, 2012. 11. EBSCO host. 10 Oct. 2013.
"Antibiotic Resistance." Acpoline. 2013. ACP American College of Physicians. 13 Oct. 2013
Samadi, David B. "Bacterial vs. viral infections." Fox News. 10 Oct. 2013. FOX News Network.
15 Oct. 2013