Home » Metro » Health and Science
Kids’ health at risk from antibiotics
Print Edition
LOCAL children are being widely exposed to antibiotics from tainted food and drinking water, potentially harming their long-term health, according to a study by Fudan University.
The research, which was published in the latest edition of Environment International, tested for 21 human and veterinary antibiotics in 505 Shanghai schoolchildren aged between 8 and 11. Traces of at least one of the drugs was found in 80 percent of the subjects tested.
The use of antibiotics is commonplace in China. In November, the World Health Organization issued a report claiming that nearly two-thirds of Chinese believed they should be used to treat colds and flu, while one-third thought they help to relieve headaches.
The study also found that Chinese doctors prescribe antibiotics to half of all outpatients, far above recommended levels.
“Beyond the health system, the economic costs of antibiotic resistance are formidable — in China, one prediction estimates the loss of up to a million lives a year by 2050,” it said.
According to thepaper.cn, in 2013 China used 162,000 tons of antibiotics.
More than 50,000 tons of the drugs were discharged into the country’s waterways and soil.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
