Antibiotic Pollution : A New Dimension in Environmental pollution

Introduction-  Antibiotic pollution means undesired presence of antibiotics in the environment arising from treatment of infectious disease to livestock prevention and production by human beings. In the context of , antibiotic pollution antibiotics as pollutant. These antibiotics spreading from living systems to non-living systems by various mechanisms. The presence of antibiotics and its residues found in the water, soil and even cow milk (reported from WHO- World Health organization) or packed milk exhibits the antibiotic contamination. The contamination of antibiotics in the desired area became a challenging problem. There are several classes of antibiotics has been discovered and most of the classes are severely affects the soil micro-environment and human micro-biome. The antibiotics not only affects the human micro-biome and but also helps in evolution of  superbugs . Superbugs are those  bacteria which are resistant to many antibiotics or single antibiotics. In some developing and developed countries antibiotics are used in agricultural practices.

Four major reasons of antibiotic pollution:

a)    Overuse and misuse of antibiotics.

b)   Disposal of  expire and non-expire antibiotics in the soil and water-resources.

c)    Antibiotic residues or waste discharged by pharmaceuticals companies in the water

d)   Disposal of  hospital or clinical waste contaminated with antibiotics.

he antibiotic overuse and misuse in both developed and developing countries are responsible for antibiotic pollution . The presence of antibiotic residues in the environment and natural systems at global risk. Antibiotic helps in development of superbugs and many antibiotic resistant strain in the microbial  world . The use of antibiotics is limitless and broad applications . Antibiotics pollution spread throughout the world. Now The antibiotic residues found in the soil, water-bodies like river, hospitals and environment. According to NCBI report various regions of India have discovered antimicrobial residues  in food animal products (such as chicken meat and milk), indicating that antibiotic use in food animal production is widespread. Not only this, many countries of the world suffers from this type of problem.

Antibiotics used in livestock for prevention from diseases, growth and ultimately helps in meat production.  Increasing population highly demands meats and animals food products that required more antibiotics(more use in poultry farm). From the recent studies the introduction of antibiotics in the humans, chickens and other commercial product producing animals may led to  incomplete absorption and alteration in metabolism, a considerable fraction is released into the environment through a variety of routes, such as sewage effluent, surface runoff, agricultural activities, and animal waste discharge. Small fraction of the antibiotic and its waste or residues can enhance of the evolution of antimicrobial resistance or superbug bacteria and that may be  hardly resistant to classical antibiotics to the fifth(5^th ) generations of the modern antibiotics. There are many cases in humans that are badly affected and exposed by antibiotic resistant microbes and unsuccessful to treat by all modern antibiotics. Selective pressure of antibiotic pollution on bacteria of importance to public health and their consequences because antibiotic selection pressure helps in superbugs evolution. The wastes from hospitals and clinic play a major role in antibiotic pollution.

 Possible modes of reduction in antibiotic pollution :

Antibiotic pollution and its effects can be controlled and minimized by -

a)    Use of antibiotics after prescriptions of doctor, do not use any antibiotics for normal purposes and without advice of doctors.

b)   Do not store large amount of antibiotics without use or need  that get expired .

c)    Do not dispose antibiotics or antibiotic residues or waste in the soil or water without pre-treatment or destroying it. Using the heat for destruction of expired antibiotics or residues  or waste.

d)   Do not use excess amount of antibiotics in livestock or poultry for meat production.

e)    Disposal of hospitals and clinical waste after pre-treatment and heat exposure in the isolated chambers.

f)     Treatment of the wastes  from pharmaceuticals companies before discharged in water or water channel of cities.

g)    Awareness among people for minimum use of antibiotics.

Conclusions:

Antibiotics are both life saving drugs as well as life diminishing agents. Spreading of antibiotics in the environment and natural resources by human activities cause severe problems.  Awareness among  people  of  scientifically use and management of antibiotics residues. If  ignorance of antibiotic pollution that will take lesser time for being an earth of antibiotic polluted planet.