The first thing that pops up in our mind with the term antibiotic is its side-effects. So, it is surprising that antibiotics can be human friendly. But it’s true!
Here we are discussing natural antibiotics. If you are unfamiliar with this term then this article will open the door of information about natural antibiotics. It is written to provide awareness regarding natural antibiotics and many important facts that a reader must know to get benefits from it.
This article will also answer your questions that usually arise in the mind of readers like:
- What are natural antibiotics?
- How long do antibiotics stay in your system?
- What is the main purpose of natural antibiotics?
- How can we utilize it for our most common health issues?
This article covers all of the above-mentioned questions with simple and clear descriptions so let’s come towards it.
What are Natural Antibiotics?
Natural antibiotics are those natural substances that help to fight against micro-organism. These natural substances can be a fruit, herb, or any plant. Each of them works with a different mechanism against a particular disease or organism. They are safe and reliable to use without any specific indication or prescription.
How long do antibiotics stay in your system?
Before discussing it, please note that in this section we are just concerned about antibiotics either natural or synthetic.
Let’s begin with the topic. The question that “How long do antibiotics stay in your system?” is the most common query asked by the general public about antibiotics. This is because of many other questions that are linked with it.
Honestly, it’s a little tricky to estimate a fixed time for an antibiotic to stay in your body. It varies from person to person according to age, gender, and health state. We must have a fine understanding of some facts behind it.
Essential organs that work to eliminate antibiotics
- It is necessary to mention that the efficiency of two body organs matters a lot to determine the periods of antibiotics that stay in your system. These organs are liver and kidney. The liver metabolizes the chemical structure of antibiotic into simple derivatives whereas kidney filters the blood and help in the excretion of these substances from the body by urination. These two organs, if previously suffer from any acute or chronic form of disease, then definitely they will prolong the stay of antibiotics in the body.
- All antibiotics are not the same.
Antibiotics do not belong to the same category. They are related to a specific class of drugs and works with a different mechanism of action accordingly. It’s somehow silly to expect every antibiotic to stay in your body for the same duration. It also varies accordingly, some antibiotics have a half-life of 5 weeks while some antibiotics leave your body within 24 hours. As long as antibiotics stay in your system, it performs its function, gets metabolized, converted into derivatives, and leaves the body. there is not any general statement that can define the time of stay of antibiotics in the human body system. Calculations are made by the pharmacists to determine how long do antibiotics stay in your system by the help of shelf life and half-life of that respective antibiotic.
Now comes towards natural antibiotics. In the case of natural antibiotics, it’s easy to figure out how long do antibiotic takes to stay in your system. The reason is that you are not using any synthetic chemical moiety as an antibiotic. You use natural substances that will be recognized by your body as “food” and processed in the normal way as food. Normally food stays in your system for 24 to 36 hours. This same range is valid for natural antibiotics to stay in our system with some exceptions.
What foods can be used as natural antibiotics?
There is no specific category of food to be used as antibiotics. Different food varieties belonging to herbs, vitamins, and crude form of herbal medicines are utilized as natural forms of antibiotics. Their results are so satisfactory and promising in fighting against various infections.
- Garlic
- Clove
- Ginger
- Onions
- Oregano
- Honey
- Horseradish
- Cinnamon
- Vitamin C
- Eucalyptus
- Apple Cider vinegar
- Grapefruit seed
- Thyme essential oil
- Goldenseal
- Echinacea
15 best sources of natural antibiotics
Above mentioned foods are described briefly with the exciting role of every individual food item as an antibiotic against infectious disease.
1. Garlic
It is reported to be effective against many bacteria like
- Salmonella
- Escherichia Coli
It prevents LDL level and has a role in heart disease. It is used as carminative, antidiabetic, and improves digestion. Consuming it in raw form can elevate blood pressure but when used with curd, it acts oppositely and helps to lower your blood pressure.
The side effects associated with it are bad breath, nausea, and vomiting in excess raw form.
2. Clove
Previously clove is well known for toothache, but its activity is also reported against bacteria namely Escherichia Coli or E.Coli
3. Ginger
It is also well known to fight against bacteria and also used in the management of other non-infectious diseases like:
- Seasickness
- Low blood sugar level
- Nausea
4. Onions
It is supposed to have some beneficial effect as garlic because both belongs to the same family. It helps in reducing inflammation, pain, and minor illness like cold and flu. Onions are best to consumed in raw form.
5. Oregano
It is reported to increase the efficiency of the immune system so that body can fight with an infectious disease in a better way. It is still under research.
6. Honey
The important and therapeutic effects of honey for wound healing are well known. History also reveals its use since the time of Aristotle. Honey is used to treat chronic burns and wounds and infectious skin diseases. It provides a coating on the skin to protect the infected area from environmental moisture. Its activity is reported against many strains of bacteria but specifically against methicilin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).
7. Horseradish
Horseradish is a root part of the vegetable and used as a spice. It boosts the energy level of the body to fight with illness. It improves blood circulation. It acts as an antibiotic for the treatment of infectious diseases related to the urinary tract and kidney stones. It is also used in Bronchitis. It can be consumed in raw form or take it with some vinegar.
9. Vitamin C
Vitamin C is well-known for its antioxidant properties and for boosting the immune system. It makes the body capable of fighting with the disease by increasing the efficiency of the immune system. Moreover, it works wonder to repair and heal the damaged skin areas. The best source of vitamin C is orange juice and pineapples.
10. Eucalyptus
Another source of natural antibiotic is Eucalyptus. It is reported by the source to fight against fungal infections and have antiseptic properties. It is also inhaled to fight with cough.
8. Cinnamon
It is the bark part of the plant. It helps to lower the blood sugar levels in kids and show antibiotics properties against yeast infections.
11. Apple cider vinegar
Its antibiotic properties are associated with malic acid that acts as natural antibiotics. It works well to relieve painful sore throat and kill germs causing throat infections.
12. Grapefruit seed
The grapefruit seed extract is used to serve as an antimicrobial compound. It is not consumed orally but used for cleaning purposes. It can be used as a facial cleanser for skin disorders or oral and nasal rinse.
13. Thyme essential oil
In the 2011 study, the effectiveness of lavender oil is tested in comparison to the activity of Thyme essential oil. Result revealed that Thyme oil is more effective. It works against antibiotic-resistant bacteria. It is for external use only and would not be consumed orally.
14. Goldenseal
It helps in the management of respiratory and digestive disease. Its antibiotic properties are also reported for skin infection by a recent study. It’s also effective for urinary tract infections. However, it is not saved for infants due to a chemical constituent Berberine. Therefore, must consult with a doctor and pharmacist about its intake and indications.
15. Echinacea
It is used over hundreds of years but now its beneficial effects are more prominently reported by researchers. Its extract tends to kill bacteria like Streptococcus pyogenes responsible for causing street throat and toxic shock syndrome. It can also fight with inflammation associated with a bacterial infection.
Empiric Antimicrobial therapy:
Severe infections need quick treatment. So therapy that is conducted without microbial confirmation by lab test is called empiric antimicrobial therapy. The purpose of od this therapy is to save the patient’s life and control the situation before it gets more to worsen. So antibiotics are given without any confirm evidence of the presence of specific micro-organisms ( bacteria, viruses, or fungi). such type of anticipated therapy is termed as Empiric therapy.
Empiric therapy with natural antibiotics
There is not any evidence of empiric therapy with natural antibiotics in literature. Therefore must ask your pharmacist and doctor before taking any of the above-mentioned food items against your infections.
Be cautious with natural antibiotics!
Natural antibiotics don’t mean to have any risk or free from side effects. Obviously they all are natural products but still can worsen your disease instead of curing them. Here are some guidelines about their risk factors:
- Too much garlic or concentrated garlic may induce bleeding. So people who recover from surgery or using blood thinner medications should be very careful about using garlic.
- Garlic also interacts with medications against HIV and reduce its effectiveness.
When antibiotic is prescribed?
Due to increased resistance and decreased effectivity of antibiotics, there is a very strict protocol that has been designed for its prescription. Following situations are associated with compensatory prescription of antibiotics:
- To prevent the spread of any infectious disease.
- To prevent the disease from becoming more chronic.
- To prevent the situation from being more worsen.
- To avoid further complications.
- To promote speedy recovery from disease or injury.
Before you leave!
Natural antibiotics are not risk-free. They have some serious drawbacks. It is compulsory to consult your respective physician or pharmacist before using any medication. In upcoming years, natural antibiotics are also supposed to be a part of empiric antimicrobial therapy as life-saving medications.