Britain’s Prince Charles thinks patients need to ride-out their illnesses rather than demanding antibiotics from their GPs.
The 67-year-old royal – the eldest son of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip – has warned that Britain faces a "potentially disastrous scenario" due to the "overuse and abuse" of the drugs, which are used to beat bacterial infections.
Speaking at a global leaders summit on antimicrobial resistance, held in London on Thursday (12.05.16), the prince said: "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."
Charles went on to state that he chose to switch to organic farming on his own estates over three decades ago due to the growing threat from antibiotic resistance and now uses homeopathic remedies to treat his cattle instead.
He explained: "As some of you may be aware this issue has been a long standing and acute concern to me. In fact, it was one of the reasons I converted my farming operation to an organic system over thirty years ago, and, incidentally, why we have been successfully using homeopathic treatments, yes homeopathic, for my cattle and sheep to reduce the risk of antibiotics.
"I have enormous sympathy for those engaged in the vital task of ensuring that, as the world population continues to increase unsustainable and travel becomes easier, antibiotics retain their availability to overcome disease."
Prince Charles: Patients need to stop asking for antibiotics
