How to Take Antibiotics: All You Need to Know

Antibiotics are used to treat most infectious diseases. Unfortunately, many people start using these medications even at insignificant health problems, but such approach is absolutely wrong. These powerful drugs affect the whole body, so they should be taken strictly according to the certain rules in order to prevent severe consequences.

What Can Treat Antibiotics?

Antibiotics are used to treat bacterial infections. As a rule, these drugs are prescribed at the following clinical picture:

• an increased temperature of long-lasting and stable nature;
• a purulent discharge from a wound or any cavity;
• an increased number of white blood cells, an increased erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) or shift of leukocyte formula to the left;
• after a marked health improvement, the patient suddenly became ill again.

Antibiotics have no effect on viruses, so taking these drugs is absolutely inappropriate for colds, acute respiratory viral infection.

4 Rules You Need to Follow When Treating with Antibiotics

1. Keep Record of Each Antibiotic Intake!

Many people are confused when the doctor prescribes an antibacterial therapy and asks the patient about how he felt at previous antibiotics therapy. But such questions are not surprising – the doctor must know the body’s response to such drugs.

Be sure to pay attention to the following points when receiving antibacterial agents:

• whether there were disorders in the digestive system (diarrhea or constipation for no apparent reasons);
• what dosage of medication was taken;
• whether there were skin rashes, cough, rhinitis of allergic origin while receiving antimicrobials.

Answers to these questions will help the doctor to choose the correct antimicrobial drug and the optimal dosage.

2. Do not Insist on Antibiotics Therapy!

Many patients do not require antibiotics. But it is not always appropriate to take these drugs, and the need is only determined by a physician.

We also remind that you should not ask for a “stronger” drug in pharmacies – perhaps some kind of medication will have an instant action, but the consequences of receiving such aggressive and powerful drugs are unknown even to doctors.

3. Get Tested for Bacterial Culture

Some diseases simply “require” a test for a bacterial culture – in this case, the prescribed drug will be the most effective and harmless. The problem is that doctors prefer to prescribe broad-spectrum antibacterial drugs. Besides, test results will be available only in 2-7 days.

4. Follow the Instructions for Use!

Doctors prescribe antibiotics at regular intervals to maintain the desired drug concentration in the blood. Many people believe that if the drug is prescribed to receive 3 times a day, it means “during breakfast, lunch, and dinner”, but in fact, this means that the drug must be taken every 8 hours. If the product must be taken 2 times a day, the patient must clearly observe a 12 hours-time interval between the doses.

Many people take antibiotics only for 3 days and interrupt the course because the symptoms disappear and the condition improves. In fact, this is a misperception because these drugs tend to accumulate in the blood and only then starts working actively. Therefore, these medications should be taken for 5-7 days, and in some cases, the course duration can last 10-14 days. If you interrupt the treatment course, the pathology will remain undertreated.

It is also necessary to closely monitor your health condition during the first 72 hours of the antibacterials course – if improvement does not occur, you will need to replace the drug (this is done by a physician).

How to Take Antibiotics Correctly?

You must strictly adhere to the time of reception of antibacterial drugs – this is indicated in the instruction.

There is a special classification of antibiotics basing on the frequency of reception:

• reception 1 hour before a meal;
• reception 1-2 hours after a meal;
• reception during a meal.

Antibiotics should only be taken with water. It is strongly not recommended to take the pills with milk and dairy products, tea, coffee and natural juices.

Take Care of the Gastrointestinal System!

Antibacterial substances in the body destroy not only pathogenic organisms but also useful ones. This type of drugs negatively affects intestinal microflora causing dysbiosis as a side effect, so you should take probiotics during treatment. Medical specialists usually advise Acipol, Linex, and other drugs.

Note that you need to take probiotics during breaks between antimicrobials therapy.

Antibiotics negatively affect the liver, so it is necessary to adhere to certain limitations in foods for the whole period of treatment:

• refuse fatty foods;
• refuse marinated and fried foods;
• limit spicy and sour foods, alcoholic beverages;
• limit smoked products.

Antibiotics are the greatest discovery of civilization, which reduced mortality from many diseases to zero. But if you want these drugs to be really effective, you need to follow all above-mentioned rules!