Charles: The ill need patience not antibiotics
PATIENTS need to wait for illnesses to clear up naturally rather than demanding drugs from GPs, the Prince of Wales has said.
Speaking at a global leaders’ summit on antimicrobial resistance, Prince Charles warned that Britain faced a “potentially disastrous scenario” because of the “overuse and abuse” of antibiotics.
The Prince said he had switched to organic farming on his estates because of the growing threat from antibiotic resistance and now treats his cattle with homeopathic remedies rather than conventional medication.
“As some of you may be aware, this issue has been a long-standing and acute concern to me,” he told delegates from 20 countries and international organisations at The Royal Society in London.
“I have enormous sympathy for those engaged in the vital task of ensuring that, as the world population continues to increase unsustainably and travel becomes easier, antibiotics retain their availability to overcome disease,” said the Prince.
“It must be incredibly frustrating to witness the fact that antibiotics have too often simply acted as a substitute for basic hygiene, or as it would seem, a way of placating a patient who has a viral infection or who actually needs little more than patience to allow a minor bacterial infection to resolve itself.”
The meeting is one of a series of events taking place ahead of the UN General Assembly in New York in September where the UK will call for urgent action to tackle antibiotic resistance.
Lord O’Neill, who chaired a review into antibiotic resistance last year, warned that, within 35 years, women may no longer be offered caesarean sections, and cancer treatments might not be available because the risk of infection will be too great.
Next month, the government will issue a report which will strongly recommend the limiting of antibiotics in farming and veterinary practices.
A spokesman for Clarence House said: “Homeopathy is used on a case by case basis at Home Farm, in combination with more conventional medicine, to minimise dependence on antibiotics.”