Avoid self-medication: PM Modi cites ICMR report on antibiotic resistance
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has urged people to avoid taking antibiotics without medical advice, expressing concern over the growing threat of antibiotic resistance.
Citing a recent report by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), PM Modi said antibiotics are increasingly failing to work against common illnesses such as pneumonia and urinary tract infections (UTIs), news agency PTI reported.
Speaking during his monthly Mann Ki Baat radio address on Sunday, he said, “This is a matter of great concern for all of us''.
Also Read:WHO Warns of Growing Global Resistance to Common Antibiotics
According to the report, the PM pointed out, one of the main reasons behind this trend is the indiscriminate use of antibiotics by the public.
He cautioned that antibiotics should not be consumed casually and stressed that they should be taken only on medical advice.
“Nowadays, people have started believing that just taking a pill would cure all their problems. This is the reason diseases and infections are proving to be too strong for these antibiotics,” the prime minister said.
PM Modi urged people to avoid self-medication, stressing that the habit is especially harmful in the case of antibiotics.
“I urge all of you to refrain from using medicines at your own discretion. This is especially important when it comes to antibiotics. I would simply say: Medicines require guidance, and antibiotics require doctors. This practice will prove to be very helpful in improving your health,” PM Modi said, reports PTI.
Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that one in six laboratory-confirmed bacterial infections causing common infections in people worldwide in 2023 were resistant to antibiotic treatments, according to a new World Health Organization (WHO) report launched today. Between 2018 and 2023, antibiotic resistance rose in over 40% of the pathogen-antibiotic combinations monitored, with an average annual increase of 5–15%.
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