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   NYU professor warns of the dangers of antibiotic overconsumption   
      
   Amanda Allen/Daily   
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   By ANASTASSIOS ADAMOPOULOS, Daily Staff Reporter   
   Published October 21, 2014   
      
   With cold and flu season in full swing, students may be heading to medical   
   professionals hoping to get a prescription for antibiotics and a quick and   
   easy means of restoring good health.   
      
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   However, Martin Blaser, director of the Human Microbiome Program at the School   
   of Medicine at New York University, spoke to around 250 people on the over   
   consumption of antibiotics and their long term effects on human microbes by   
   giving a peek at parts    
   of his book, Missing Microbes and responding to the audience's questions.   
      
   The event was hosted by the University's Host Microbiome Initiative, the   
   Center for Microbial Studies and Procter and Gamble.   
      
   Blaser discussed his book, noting that it revolves around the idea that   
   microbes in the human body have purposely been around for a long time since   
   they are beneficial to humans. However, modern medicine has triggered changes   
   that are leading to new    
   diseases. Blaser said understanding this phenomenon is key for reversing the   
   current situation.   
      
   "We have believed so much in antibiotics that wherever we've gone we have   
   taken a box with us and people accept it because antibiotics can be life   
   saving," he said. "They can help in so many severe cases. But none of us have   
   been measuring what are the    
   side effects -- what are the down sides?"   
      
   Blaser is a member of the eight-member external advisory committee composed of   
   non-University professors and medical specialists that will be reviewing the   
   Host Microbiome Initiative's work Wednesday.   
      
   Thomas Schmidt, a professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, is one lab   
   leader at the Center for Microbial Studies. He said the difference between the   
   Center and the Host Microbiome Initiative is that the latter focuses solely on   
   human microbes while    
   the former also deals with microbes found beyond the human body in aquatic,   
   terrestrial environments and engineered systems.   
      
   "One of the missions of the Center is to educate and engage in discussions in   
   discussions of the microbial world," Schmidt said.   
      
   He added that he appreciated gaining Blaser's perspective and expertise to the   
   public during his visit to the University.   
      
   Blaser read excerpts about the effects of widespread use by pregnant woman of   
   the drugs Diethylstilbestrol, or DES, and Thalidomide, both developed in   
   1950s. He said these drugs never had a lot of scientific basis to support   
   them, but were marketed very    
   well leading to overconsumption. DES in particular, whose symptoms became   
   apparent many years later, is an example of an instance where antibiotic's   
   potential side effects may not be initially apparent.   
      
   Blaser noted that probiotics, which are organisms and microbes inside foods   
   that when consumed provide apparent benefits, are usually safe but are largely   
   untested and more research should be conducted on them. He added that in   
   addition to medication,    
   humans often ingest antibiotics when they consume meat and dairy after the   
   animals have been given food supplemented with antibiotics.   
      
   He added that people who have minimal exposure to or have never come in   
   contact with antibiotics should see how unaffected microbes look to better   
   understand the full impact of the mutation.   
      
   "One of the problems is antibiotics are everywhere -- in all the developing   
   countries in the world," Blaser said.   
      
   He emphasized the difficulty in finding a person that was completely   
   not-exposed to antibiotics.   
      
   Assistant Medical Prof. Vincent Young said the University will allocate   
   approximately $3 million per year for the next five years to the Host   
   Microbiome Initiative.   
      
   He added that this is major initiative both in health and diseases and noted   
   that people often wrongly assume that the Medical School mostly deals with   
   treating diseases.   
      
   "The opposite is probably more true with the microbiome; it has ways of   
   keeping us healthy and if we really understand that then that's really even   
   more powerful than trying to find new ways to treat things," Young said.   
      
      
   http://www.michigandaily.com/article/professor-warns-dangers-antibiotic-overuse   
      
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