The Impact of Antibiotics

How do Antibiotics work?

Antibiotics are used to treat bacterial infections and work by weakening the bacteria so your immune system can easily overpower it.

Unfortunately, antibiotics don't always just target the bad bacteria. Broad spectrum and

prophylactic antibiotics have been shown to kill off beneficial bacteria and reduce microbiota diversity, overall weakening your gastrointestinal (GIT) structure, function and immunity. And this can happen after just one round of Antibiotics, imagine the damaged caused when you are prescribed multiple rounds!

When your beneficial GIT microbiota has been weakened, you're at a higher risk for imbalances within your bacteria, allowing opportunistic microbes and bacteria to strengthen and spread and to enter your system via your GALT (part of your immune system that surrounds your GIT). This can cause weakening of your immune system, increased local and systemic inflammation, increased intestinal hyperpermeability ('leaky gut') and decreasing your ability to adequately breakdown and digest your food leading to reduced overall nutrient status.

All of the above leaves you vulnerable to infections, digestive issues, imbalances in your hormones and neurotransmitters (happy hormones), nutritional deficiencies, allergies and intolerances and much more!

Plus antibiotics don't actually do anything for a virus.... *cough* the flu *cough*.

This is why Probiotics are so important!

Probiotics can help reduce the negative impact of antibiotics when taken concurrently and can help restore the strength and diversity of your beneficial gut bacteria post antibiotic use.

Probiotics have also shown a number of beneficial effects on the gut microbiome, including reducing the growth and spread of harmful microorganisms, improving stomach acid production, reducing intestinal hyperpermeability, improving gut barrier function and supporting modulation of local and systemic immunity.

Remember, it's your health....

So, if you are being prescribed Antibiotics- don't be afraid to ask questions; Do I truly need them? Is it a bacterial infection or a virus? Is there anything else I can do to support my body? And when you do need them, take a strain specific probiotic at the same time and give your body the best chance to fight.

And don't get me wrong, antibiotics 100% have a very necessary need in our total health care system, however they might not always be the right choice for you at the time. It's all about making informed, empowering decisions about your health, after all, you're the one that has to live with the consequences!

Thanks for reading beautiful human! Samii BHSc- Naturopathy Sacred Natural Health Founder.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this blog post is for educational purposes only and should not replace professional medical advice. Always consult with your health practitioner before making any changes to your treatment.

Want to dive deeper? Read..... https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8756738/#:~:text=Broad%E2%80%90spectrum%20antibiotics%20reduce%20gut,deleterious%20consequences%20for%20the%20host.