Lately, everyone seems to be coming down with some seasonal sickness. But will taking antibiotics help?

Myth: Antibiotics can help if I have a cold or the flu.

Colds and flu are caused by viruses, not bacteria.

Antibiotics fight bacteria, not viruses. Some people report getting better after a few days, but this is just because the cold has run its course and not due to the effect of the antibiotics.

While sometimes these illnesses can be treated with an anti-viral, many times the virus must run its course and only the symptoms can be treated. 

Myth: To prevent resistance, patients must complete every dose of antibiotics prescribed, even after they feel better.

The origins of this myth are slightly obscure, but appear to date back to the 1940s.

Even though this myth is repeated blindly, there are no data to support the idea that continuing antibiotics past resolution of signs and symptoms of infection reduces the emergence of antibiotic resistance. To the contrary, studies have repeatedly found that shorter-course therapies are less likely to select out for antibiotic resistance, which is consistent with fundamental principles of natural selection.

Myth: Our bodies become resistant to antibiotics.

Bacteria become resistant to antibiotics, not humans. People can become colonised with drug-resistant bacteria but they themselves cannot become antibiotic-resistant.