A study led by Jessica Furner-Pardoe at the University of Warwick, has produced astounding results regarding the issue of antibiotic resistant bacteria. A few years ago, Jessica and her team stumbled across an ancient natural remedy, which consisted of a concoction of garlic, onion, bile salts and wine.
The remedy was originally written in an old English medical text called, Bald’s Leechbook. Several batches of the garlic and onion cocktail were used to form a salve which was named Bald's eyesalve.
In a prior study, fellow colleague and microbiologist, Dr. Freya Harrison found the ancient remedy to be effective against biofilms of Staphylococcus aureus. The current study by Furner-Pardoe led to the discovery that the remedy was also effective against other antibiotic resistant bacteria such as Acinetobacter baumannii, Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, S. epidermidis and S. pyogenes.
Dr. Harrison believes that the salve is an effective remedy for treating diabetic ulcers.
"We think it has particular promise for treating diabetic foot infections. They are the ultimate, super-resistant biofilm infection. They are a huge health and economic burden. They really can become untreatable," said Harrison.
Diabetic infections, in extreme cases, often lead to necrosis and amputation. When necrosis occurs, limbs of the diabetic individual can become very dark. A recent example of this was depicted in the Lifetime television movie, The Clark Sisters: First Ladies of Gospel, in a scene where Dr. Mattie Moss became extremely sick due to diabetes and was unable to walk when her entire foot became darkened. She would later die due to complications from her diabetes.
The results from the study are not surprising to alternative health workers with in depth knowledge about herbs, plants and natural remedies. They firmly believe in the herbs and plants that they profess about. Allium sativum or garlic, as repulsive as it may be to some, is a plant miracle of nature which offers numerous health benefits to the human body.
Mainstream medical communities often underestimate the efficacy of herbal and natural remedies for treating disease. The study highlighted the singular compound isolation which is notorious in conventional drug development. This particular study is ground-breaking in that it achieved powerful and undeniable results in the destruction of bacteria that are normally resistant to chemically derived antibiotics. It’s promising because it proves that when natural remedies are combined on a synergistic level, disease can be eradicated. There is strong evidence that whole plant extracts have biologically stronger effects than singular or isolated compounds (Furner-Pardoe et al., 2020).
So what will the future of antibiotics look like? Major medical procedures such as surgery and chemotherapy will become dangerous if bacteria continues to become resistant to antibiotics. Conventional drug companies are running out of options that are effective in treating resistant bacteria. The fact that garlic and onion proved to be effective in penetrating and killing biofilm structures of bacteria is extremely useful knowledge for the future of antibiotics. With a study like this, people can certainly look forward to a future where natural compounds are hailed and used as a first choice in destroying antibiotic resistant bacteria.
Dettweiler, M., Lyles, J.T., Nelson, K. et al. American Civil War plant medicines inhibit growth, biofilm formation, and quorum sensing by multidrug-resistant bacteria. Sci Rep 9, 7692 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-44242-y
Furner-Pardoe, J., Anonye, B.O., Cain, R. et al. Anti-biofilm efficacy of a medieval treatment for bacterial infection requires the combination of multiple ingredients. Sci Rep 10, 12687 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-69273-8
Harrison, F., Roberts, A. E., Gabrilska, R., Rumbaugh, K. P., Lee, C., & Diggle, S. P. (2015). A 1,000-Year-Old Antimicrobial Remedy with Antistaphylococcal Activity. MBio, 6(4). doi:10.1128/mbio.01129-15
Comments
Post a Comment