Are Antibiotics Included Hard Drugs

timesofummah.com – Are Antibiotics Included Hard Drugs. Antibiotics are certainly no stranger to the ear. There are many types of antibiotics that can be used for treatment. Usually, doctors prescribe antibiotics to treat diseases caused by certain pathogenic infections.

When you want to buy antibiotics at a pharmacy, pharmacists will often ask if there is a prescription from a doctor. Actually, are antibiotics including hard drugs? Here’s the explanation!

1. Are antibiotics considered  hard drugs?

For minor illnesses, such as coughs, colds or headaches, it is not uncommon for people to try self-medication using over-the-counter drugs. The Directorate General of Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices (Parmalkes) of the Ministry of Health explained that this self-medication effort is called self-medication.

Antibiotics are not drugs that can be sold freely. The Ministry of Health (Kemenkes) website states that antibiotics are hard drugs, so you need a doctor’s prescription when using them. While self-medication treatment should not be carried out using hard drugs. Therefore, antibiotics should not be used as self-medication treatment.

Adding an explanation to the POM National Drug Information Center page, hard drugs are drugs that can only be obtained using a doctor’s prescription. Hard drugs can be identified from the logo printed on the drug which is a red circle with a black border and the letter K in the middle. Hard drugs also cannot be obtained anywhere, because they are only sold in pharmacies.

2. The benefits of antibiotics

Medical News Today explains that antibiotics are very powerful drugs because they can cure certain infections and can save lives if used properly. Antibiotics can kill bacteria or inhibit their development.

Before the bacteria develop and cause symptoms, the body’s immune system can kill the bacteria that enter the body. White blood cells will attack pathogenic bacteria, even when symptoms appear, the immune system is still able to overcome them.

However, sometimes the pathogenic bacteria multiply so that the immune system is not able to fight all the pathogenic bacteria. Therefore, antibiotics are needed to help fight the bacterial infection.

3. Viral infections cannot be cured with antibiotics

Knowing an infection is caused by a viral infection or bacterial infection can help treatment be effective. Upper respiratory tract infections, such as flu and colds are most often caused by viruses. While antibiotics cannot treat infections caused by viruses.

If someone uses antibiotics excessively or uses antibiotics inappropriately, the bacteria will become resistant or immune. This means that antibiotics are no longer effective against disease-causing bacteria because the bacteria have become stronger.

4. The importance of using antibiotics wisely

Experts suggest using antibiotics wisely and rationally. This is because the use of antibiotics is associated with side effects and antibiotic resistance.

Medical News Today explains, antibiotic resistance occurs when antibiotics are no longer effective in curing bacterial infections. Antibiotic resistance occurs more rapidly when there is misuse and overuse of antibiotics.

Sometimes, inappropriate antibiotic prescribing or when someone takes antibiotics not according to doctor’s advice can increase the risk of antibiotic resistance. Therefore, it is important to complete the antibiotic treatment that has been prescribed and not to share antibiotics with other people, even if they experience the same symptoms.

5. Drug-resistant bacteria make treatment more difficult

The World Health Organization (WHO) states that antibiotic resistance is a threat to health, food security and development globally. This is because drug-resistant bacteria make the infection more difficult to treat. If a bacterial infection cannot be treated with first-line antibiotics, it is necessary to use other, more expensive antibiotics.

In addition, the duration of hospital stay is also longer, which further increases medical costs. The existence of antibiotic resistance also increases the risk of death. As explained by WHO, at least 700 thousand people die every year from drug-resistant diseases, including 230 thousand people die from multidrug-resistant tuberculosis.

Antibiotics are hard drugs, so they cannot be used as self-medication and can only be obtained at pharmacies with a doctor’s prescription. The careless use of antibiotics actually endangers oneself and others because it risks causing bacteria to become drug-resistant. As bacteria become more drug-resistant, treatment becomes more difficult, even increasing the risk of death.