What are antibiotics?

Antibiotics are medical drugs used to treat bacterial infections. They can kill bacteria which cause illness or at least limit their reproduction to such a degree that the body’s own immune system can conquer the infection. Antibiotics are only effective against infections caused by bacteria, such as certain types of pneumonia, urinary tract infections, and skin inflammation.

What you should know about antibiotic resistance:

Antibiotic resistance occurs when bacteria change in a way that allows them to protect themselves against the effects of antibiotics. The number of resistant bacteria is increasing. In order to prevent a situation in the future in which we no longer have any effective antibiotics to combat life-threatening bacterial infections, we must be responsible with how we use these important and often life-saving medications.

Antibiotics only work against bacteria and never against viruses.

In nine out of ten cases, colds are caused by viruses. The flu, too, is caused by viruses. In these cases, antibiotics are not only useless, but their unnecessary use can contribute to the development of antibiotic resistance. Only take antibiotics if your doctor has prescribed them for a bacterial infection.

What you can do:

Unnecessary or incorrect use as well as premature cessation of a course of antibiotics lead to antibiotics losing their efficacy against bacterial infections and may mean they can no longer help when they are truly needed.

Therefore:  Do not take antibiotics without consulting your doctor. Do not purchase antibiotics without a prescription online or internationally.

In general

• Stick to the prescribed dose of the active ingredient of a given antibiotic.
• Take the medication for as long as instructed by your doctor.
• Let your doctor know if you experience any abnormalities or undesired effects. Do not stop taking the medication without consulting your doctor.

Intake

• Stick to the prescribed intake times. Three times per day means every eight hours, twice daily means every 12 hours, and once daily means every 24 hours.
• Pay attention to the correct intake times as indicated on the package insert (before, during or after mealtimes).
• Take the antibiotic with water.

Handling

• Never take antibiotics prescribed for another person.
• Pay attention to correct storage of the medication over treatment period.
• Leftover antibiotics should not be kept for use at a later date. Discard leftover antibiotics with regular household waste unless stated otherwise on the package insert.
• In some municipalities and towns, medical drugs are to be discarded with local mobile pollutant collection or at recycling facilities. Find out how to correctly dispose of medical drugs in your region by visiting arzneimittelentsorgung.de/home/.