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Superbugs and the Ultimate Economic Weapon: Food
Superbugs and the Ultimate Economic Weapon: Food
The food-exporting superpowers are easy to identify.
As my esteemed colleague Michael Snyder chronicled in a recent Zero Hedge post, world agricultural production is under assault from extreme weather and diseases such as African swine fever. Floods & Drought Devastate Crops All Over The Planet; Is A Global Food Crisis Be Coming?
Everyone understands extreme weather is a danger to food production. The overuse of antibiotics is less well understood. As this article explains, most antibiotics are given to livestock, which then become breeding grounds for antibiotic-resistant microbes, which are known as superbugsonce they develop immunity to all conventional antibiotics.
Are antibiotics turning livestock into superbug factories?
Almost 80% of all antibiotics in the United States aren’t taken by people. They’re given to cows, pigs, and chickens to make them grow more quickly or as a cheap alternative to keeping them healthy. These drugs could give rise to superbugs—bacteria that can’t be treated with modern medicine—and things are only getting worse. In 2013, more than 131,000 tons of antibiotics were used in food animals worldwide; by 2030, it will be more than 200,000 tons.
Here’s the problem with superbugs: you can’t kill them with standard-issue antibiotics. They spread like wildfire through monoculture crops and livestock yards and kill with indiscriminate alacrity.
The only solution, poor as it is, is to kill every animal that might be infected–tens of millions or hundreds of millions in the case of African swine fever.
Pigs and chickens are breeding grounds for diseases that jump the low barrier between livestock and humans. So the superbug that starts out killing animals can, with generally modest genetic modifications via variability, start infecting and killing humans with the same alacrity.
Super scary: animal agriculture linked to global ‘superbug’ threat
How industrial farming techniques can breed superbugs
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WHO’s 2050 Prediction: 10 Million People Could Die from Mutated Superbugs And We’ll Have No Drugs to Fight Them
WHO’s 2050 Prediction: 10 Million People Could Die from Mutated Superbugs And We’ll Have No Drugs to Fight Them
The discovery and widespread use of antibiotics many decades ago have saved millions of lives. Infections that were once a death sentence were easily treated with the medications. Unfortunately, many antibiotics are now becoming ineffective because bacteria have become resistant to the drugs.
We have overused antibiotics with reckless abandon and are now beginning to see the consequences. Some bacteria have mutated into “superbugs”.
We’ve used antibiotics so freely, some bacteria have mutated into so-called “superbugs.” They’ve become resistant to the very drugs designed to kill them. A study commissioned by the British government estimates that by 2050, 10 million people worldwide could die each year from antibiotic-resistant bacteria. That’s more than currently die from cancer. (source)
Infections by drug-resistant microbes may eventually be the leading cause of death.
The World Health Organization predicts that worldwide death rates from drug-resistant microbes will climb from the current 700,000 per year to 10 million by 2050. At that point, they will have surpassed cancer, heart disease, and diabetes to become the main cause of death in the human race.
Antibiotic resistance is one of the biggest health threats of our time, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):
Antibiotic resistance has the potential to affect people at any stage of life, as well as the healthcare, veterinary, and agriculture industries, making it one of the world’s most urgent public health problems.
Each year in the U.S., at least 2 million people are infected with antibiotic-resistant bacteria, and at least 23,000 people die as a result. (source)
Karen Hoffmann, who heads the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, told Newsweek those figures may be on the low side:
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The Grim Reality of Survival Medicine in Austere Conditions
The Grim Reality of Survival Medicine in Austere Conditions
Several years ago, I wrote the following for a survival medicine book we had put together. I still think it provides a realistic view of the potential medical environment in a grid down or austere survival situation.
From a healthcare standpoint, a post-SHTF world looks quite grim.
“With no antibiotics, there would be no treatment for bacterial infections; pneumonia or a simple cut could kill again, contagious diseases (including those sexually transmitted) would make a comeback, and high mortality rates would be associated with any surgery. Poor hygiene and disrupted water supplies would lead to an increase in diseases such as typhoid and cholera.
Without vaccines, there would be a progressive return in infectious diseases such as polio, tetanus, whooping cough, diphtheria, mumps, etc. especially among children. People suffering from chronic illnesses such as asthma, diabetes, or epilepsy would be severely affected with many dying (especially insulin-dependent diabetics).
There would be no anesthetic agents resulting in a return to tortuous surgical procedures with the patient awake or if they were lucky, drunk or stoned. The same would apply to painkillers; a broken leg would be agony, and dying of cancer would be distressing for the patient and their family.
Without reliable oral contraceptives or condoms the pregnancy rate would rise and with it the maternal and neonatal death rates, women would die during pregnancy and delivery again, and premature babies would die. Women would still seek abortions, and without proper instruments or antibiotics death from septic abortion would be common again. In the absence of proper dental care, teeth would rot, and painful extractions would have to be performed. What limited medical supplies available would have to be recycled, resulting in increased risks of hepatitis and HIV infection.”
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
Superbugs Pose A Very Real Threat To Humanity
Superbugs Pose A Very Real Threat To Humanity
Superbugs, those pesky bacteria that have evolved to become resistant to antibiotics, are on the rise and pose a very real threat to humanity. Antimicrobial resistance is a large and growing problem, with the potential for enormous health and economic consequences for the United States and the rest of the world.
According to CNBC, the media outlet which reported on a new OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) report, released Wednesday, superbug infections could cost the lives of about 2.4 million people in North America, Europe, and Australia over the next 30 years unless more is done to stem antibiotic resistance, which is already high across the globe.
Resistance is also projected to grow even more rapidly in low- and middle-income countries. In Brazil, Indonesia, and Russia, for example, between 40 percent and 60 percent of infections are already resistant, compared to an average of 17 percent in OECD countries. In these countries, the growth of antimicrobial resistance rates is forecast to be 4 to 7 times higher than in OECD countries between now and 2050.
About 29,500 persons die each year on average in the United States from infections related to eight drug-resistant bacteria. By 2050, that number is expected to rise sharply. It is estimated that antimicrobial resistance will kill about 1 million people in the United States, in just over 30 years.
The economic toll of this superbug crisis is huge: In the United States alone the health-care costs dealing with antimicrobial resistance could reach $65 billion by 2050, according to the OECD report. That is more than the flu, HIV, and tuberculosis. If projections are correct, resistance to backup antibiotics will be 70 percent higher in 2030 compared to 2005 in OECD countries. In the same period, resistance to third-line treatments will double across EU countries. –CNBC
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SHTF Medical Emergencies: Why This Antibiotic is the Most Popular Type Stored
SHTF Medical Emergencies: Why This Antibiotic is the Most Popular Type Stored
Herbalism is the parent of modern medicine, and the two “branches” should complement one another and never be in contradiction.
I have the utmost respect for the educational background of physicians. The definition of a true physician is one who uses his skills to for the benefit of a patient in need and helps that patient as best as can be done. Don’t discount modern medicine completely. Where one of the two branches cannot work, or does not work effectively, the other should be able to pick up the slack. In this light, do not relegate all of the chemistry and science behind medicines that do work. Sometimes we need that extra “edge” when facing an illness we cannot rectify through traditional home remedies.
Why Amoxicillin is the Most Popular Type of Antibiotic
One of the best medicines to stock up on is Amoxicillin, a drug that has been actively used in the service since 1972. It is a pretty broad-spectrum antibiotic that is great for bacterial infections, such as ear infections, sinusitis, respiratory ailments, UTI (Urinary Tract Infections), Lyme disease (yes, we’re entering tick season now), pneumonia, and other ailments. A well-rounded antibiotic, it has a shelf life of more than 15 years. That in itself should ring a bell for you as a happy prepper.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
Madagascar Outbreak: It Is ‘Inevitable’ The Plague Becomes Resistant To Drugs
Madagascar Outbreak: It Is ‘Inevitable’ The Plague Becomes Resistant To Drugs
The newest warning about the outbreak of the airborne pneumonic plague, or black death, in Madagascar has been released. Officials warn that it’s inevitable that this bacterial infection that’s infected over 2000 people will become resistant to antibiotics.
The only way to treat a person who has contracted the plague is with antibiotics. But experts now warn that because they are being used so much to treat the infection, antibiotics resistance is inevitable and making this disease much more terrifying. Once the bacteria is resistant, the Madagascar healthcare system will be overwhelmed, and the disease will have control of the nation.
According to the Daily Mail, Madagascar’s healthcare system will be unable to cope if the deadly plague outbreak continues to escalate, a scientist has warned. Scores of doctors and nurses have been struck down with the disease, which is predicted to gather momentum in the coming weeks and there are growing fears hospitals will be unable to meet the illness’ burden. Official figures reveal at least 2,034 people have been infected with the “medieval disease” so far in what has been described as the “worst outbreak in 50 years.” The black death outbreak has so far claimed at least 165 lives.
Although the plague is responding well to antibiotics right now, drug resistance is also an increasing concern amongst experts who predict it will vastly accelerate the disease’s death toll. Professor John Joe McFadden from the University of Surrey told MailOnline: “Fortunately in [the] plague, it has not developed much antibiotic resistance. If that kicks in, the plague will be far, far scarier. If you throw more and more antibiotics at patients, antibiotic resistance is more or less inevitable.”
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Health Alert: Fatal Airborne Transmission of Pneumonic Plague Spreading at Alarming Rate. These Lifesaving Antibiotics are Your Best Defense
Health Alert: Fatal Airborne Transmission of Pneumonic Plague Spreading at Alarming Rate. These Lifesaving Antibiotics are Your Best Defense
[Editor’s Note: Have you noticed how deadly outbreaks have been occurring more frequently? Remember the Ebola scare? Or the avian flu epidemic? While many of these spread in third world countries, they are escalating in severity. Mother Nature may be telling us something.
Presently, the pneumonic plague or as many of us know as The Black Death has resurfaced and it’s airborne. Thus far, 684 plague cases and 57 deaths have occurred from an airborne transmission of the plague in Madagascar and Seychelles. One fact is certain, this outbreak is spreading at an alarming rate and many in the affected area are scrambling for face masks, supplies and most importantly, antibiotics.
Only time will tell if this outbreak moves to other parts of the world, but it is important to keep a vigilant eye on this health crisis and know how to protect yourself to mitigate the effects.]
Dave Hodges released an excellent piece recently, entitled “Something Very Big and Very Evil is About to Happen” that is worth reading, especially concerning the special warehouse facilities where government medicine and supplies are being stockpiled throughout the nation. Another very relevant article is entitled “An alarming development as the Bubonic Plague is now confirmed in the Seychelles while hundreds of new cases suspected in Madagascar“. The reason this plague is so bad is that it is readily transmissible, it is a pneumonic plague (which is more severe), and fatalities are occurring within 24 hours.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
DIY Antibiotics
DIY ANTBIOTICS
Watch this short 2:31 video by backyard food production expert and author Marjory Wildcraft on DIY antibiotics.
Most people will want to do this in their backyards, on a patio, or rooftop. No, you won’t need a laboratory or chemistry set. No, you won’t need microscopes or chemicals. Nope, you won’t even need a spectrum analyzer or centrifuge. You won’t even need a degree in biochemistry or organic formulations.
This particular antibiotic not only helps boost your immune system for any time you have an infection, but it is also good for when you have a cold, it’s known to help lower cholesterol and high blood pressure, it’s been known to help balance blood sugar, fight cancer, and fungus. Yet it is completely natural.
Marjory will host a free online event from March 7th – 13th, which features 30 backyard farming experts who will reveal secrets to growing your own gorgeous organic fruit, vegetables, herbs, wildflowers, livestock, even bees all in your own backyard!
