The Growing Issue of Antibiotic Resistance
Antibiotic resistance is what happens when bacteria in one’s body gain the has the ability overpower drugs or antibiotics that are meant to kill them. Antibiotic Resistance is extremely serious because antibiotics will be ineffective. Antibiotic resistance is a growing issue because meat suppliers will put doses of antibiotics in their animals to help them not get sick also, to help them grow bigger. The issue with meat is that when we eat it there is still antibiotic residue in it. My sources in this paper try to how antibiotics effect our body, and what we can do about it.
Marcia Crosse, P.hd and Ms. Anu K. Mittal wrote an article on the topic on antibiotic resistance. Marcia Crosse, P.hd is a director at the GAO (U.S. Government Accountability Office) (“Resources”). Ms. Anu K. Mittal is also a director at the GAO (“Anu K. Mittal”). The article says, “Scientific evidence has shown that certain bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics are transferred from animals to humans through the consumption or handling of meat that contains antibiotic-resistant bacteria” (Crosse). This is concerning on many levels. I hope we can find a way to solve this issue
Faculty of natural and agricultural sciences at North-West University says, “Antibiotics are commonly used in veterinary medicine, and subsequently drug residues may persist in foods derived from animals, which may pose adverse health effects for the consumer []. Human exposure to significant levels of antibiotic residues from animal products may aggravate immunological responses in susceptible individuals and negatively affect intestinal microbiota []” (“Ramatla”). Antibiotic residue is an issue that many people do not know about. This health risk is extremely dangerous to the consumer and the issue does not seem to be solving itself.
In a CNN article published in December 2015; Panera Bread the fast-casual bakery style restaurant said, “More than a decade ago, we started serving chicken raised without antibiotics — ahead of the industry. We’re glad to see that others have followed and are proud to have extended our commitment to all of the chicken, ham, bacon, sausage and roasted turkey on our salads and sandwiches[]” (qtd. in “Restaurants”). Panera Bread is one of the leading fast food chains in anti antibiotics in meat. Panera Bread marks a change in the industry being one of many to talk publicly on this terrible issue. Most restaurants are not on the same level as Panera Bread when it comes to antibiotic free meat.
Change is part of the issue. These restaurants buy their meat for the less than the status quo, and chasing their meat suppliers would lead to more expensive and better quality meat. Another issue to consider is that the meat suppliers that have meat with antibiotics in them will be going out of business if they can’t fix there problems. I strongly believe that antibiotic resistance is an enormous issue, but it lies on the supplier and the corporate restaurants involved. If restaurants choose a supplier that has been known for regularly injecting antibiotics in their animals than that supplier should probably not be used for any restaurants. People want to blame the restaurants, but they are not the only ones at fault; the integrity of the supplier is also tested.
Another issue that I see when it comes to antibiotic resistance or antibiotics in meat is that the regulations for something like this are not stringent. I can see the laws and regulations changing to where it becomes more beneficial for the consumer, but as these laws stand, they’re too loose on meat safety standards. People need to know what they’re eating (putting into their body). I think everyone can agree that antibiotics in meat is not beneficial to the consumer. The question that lies is where to draw the line, how much antibiotics is to much, when can it become harmful? When should we be cautious?
When we start to break down the fundamental issue we see that the fault does not lie one individual party. This issue is very large and could take years to fix, but it will take us working together to make our food more safe for everyone.