Dubai, United Arab Emirates (CNN) — Do you have a bacterial or viral infection? A question that perplexes many people, which prompted the Gulf Health Council to clarify the difference between the two cases, through its official account on Instagram.
bacterial infection
Diseases:
- Whooping cough
- Urinary tract infection
Do you need an antibiotic? yes
Viral infection
Diseases:
- Colds
- flu
- Most cases of cough
- Corona Virus
Do you need an antibiotic? no
And the Gulf Health Council continued, via Instagram, that viruses cannot be treated with antibiotics, and they will not cure you of infection, and may cause side effects that enhance antibiotic resistance.
And if you feel better when you take antibiotics, it may be because the virus has ended its cycle inside the body.
And while some people believe that excessive intake of antibiotics may help them in treatment, the Egyptian Ministry of Health and Population explained, through its official account on the “Instagram” website, that it may lose its effectiveness.
Therefore, it is very important to always consult your doctor regarding the best treatment for you.
And if you want to maintain the effectiveness of antibiotics and handle them accurately, be sure to follow the following:
- Do not share antibiotics with others
- Do not take antibiotics except following consulting a doctor
A spokesman for the Egyptian Ministry of Health, Hossam Abdel Ghaffar, said that the excessive use of antibiotics must be stopped, otherwise we will reach a stage where we will not find antibiotics to deal with bacteria.
The following are some of the points that Abdel Ghaffar mentioned regarding antibiotics, according to the Egyptian Ministry of Health and Population’s post via “Instagram”:
- Recent studies have shown that there is a fatal effect on the general health of humans, in the event of misuse of antibiotics
- The number of deaths caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria is much higher than the number of deaths caused by diseases such as AIDS and malaria
- There is no doubt that the resistance of bacteria to antibiotics and not being affected by them is due to the excessive and unjustified use of antibiotics, whether for humans or animals.
- Antibiotics should not be given without consulting a doctor, and they should not be shared between family members
- Antibiotics do not treat viruses
- The antibiotic dose prescribed by the doctor must be completed, even following recovery