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Johanna Rhodes, an infectious disease specialist at Imperial College London, told the New York Times: "We are driving [the spread of antifungal-resistant organi

Johanna Rhodes, an infectious disease specialist at Imperial College London, told the New York Times: "We are driving [the spread of antifungal-resistant organisms] with the use of fungicides on crops." The Times also cited a theory from Tom Chiller, head of the CDC's fungal branch, that C. auris has become increasingly prevalent as the widespread use of azole fungicides has killed off other fungi on crops. So ... let's suppose I care about slowing the development of drug-resistant fungi. As an individual, what can I do? I basically buy into the claim that widespread overuse of antibiotic drugs in humans has caused an increase of multi-drug-resistant bacteria and I'm generally on board with limiting my own use of antibiotics (e.g. not asking a physician for an antibiotic prescription for a minor illness that is most likely viral). I'm not so sure I understand the literature on antibiotic use in livestock and I happily eat meat without thinking about what drugs the animals were given. What should I do with respect to azole fungicides and my grocery-shopping decisions? I don't currently see strong evidence that buying food marked "organic" is better for health or the environment, but should this new-to-the-public-consciousness information about azole fungicide use in crops change my mind? Should I be trying to buy crops which were not made with the use of azole fungicides? What kind IS that -- are those fungicides on the permitted/proscribed list for things that carry the marketing label "organic" in the grocery store, and do certain farming practices end up using a lot more of this apparently irresponsible pesticide versus certain other practices? I took a cursory look at this for about half an hour and could not figure it out, even after trying to understand primary-source literature from the past few years about C. auris and USDA rules. I also can't even tell if individual consumer-level actions make a difference, or if it's not worth trying. Admittedly science reporting is really tough but it's a little surprising that nothing in the literature I could readily find clearly suggests what researchers think consumers should do differently (if anything).

Alex3917 8y ago
> What should I do with respect to azole fungicides and my grocery-shopping decisions? I would avoid using non-organic citrus for zest. Conventional lemons and limes get covered in antifungal drugs before getting covered again in wax. So you probably don’t want to be eating the outside.
nickysielicki 8y ago
> and I'm generally on board with limiting my own use of antibiotics (e.g. not asking a physician for an antibiotic prescription for a minor illness that is most likely viral). I, on the other hand, have an illegal supply of powerful antibiotics and antifungals sitting in my medicine cabinet. They're technically for fish, but do the math: there are only a handful of factories making these pills in the world, and the pills are indistinguishable. I don't feel guilty about it in the slightest. There has been a fundamental change in the role of doctors and healthcare professionals in the past 30 years, and I don't like it. You can go to a doctor, and you can both agree that you have a certain infection, and the doctor will refuse to prescribe a drug which all parties know will cure the infection. I think that's a new development in medical practice. So that's why I have fish medicine. Because when I'm sick for 3 weeks and still getting worse, fuck the greater good, I'm getting mine. And that's why you should take fish medicine, too: because as long as there are people like me, you're fighting a lost cause.
- DanBC 8y ago
  But you in your home are unlikely to be able to diagnose whether an illness is bacterial or viral, and so sometimes you will be exposing yourself to anti-biotics for no reason. That's not a risk-free option. You might be happy with the amount of risk, but I doubt you know what the level of risk actually is. > doctor will refuse to prescribe a drug which all parties know will cure the infection Mostly it's doctors saying "we don't know if this is viral or bacterial, and by the time the tests come back it will have cleared up", or they're saying "this is a self limiting condition with no long lasting effects and taking antibiotics will shorten the duration by only half a day".
- matthewmacleod 8y ago
  You can go to a doctor, and you can both agree that you have a certain infection, and the doctor will refuse to prescribe a drug which all parties know will cure the infection That’s really not a thing that’s happening. You might find a doctor reticent to throw antibiotics at minor infections, but that’s because of their side effects rather than anything to do with antibiotic resistance. In any case, even if there are a small number of people misusing antibiotics, it’s likely that the effect of their use in farming is far more harmful in the whole.
DoreenMichele 8y ago
let's suppose I care about slowing the development of drug-resistant fungi. As an individual, what can I do? Grow some of your own food so you can control what goes on it. Reduce your use of harsh chemicals generally in life/at home. Skip particle board furnishings. Stick to glass, metal, hard plastic and real wood. Eat right and exercise as your first line of defense for your own health. /2 cents
- kuzehanka 8y ago
  > Grow some of your own food so you can control what goes on it. This is laughable. Growing your own food is a cute hobby, but if it was actually adopted at scale, the resource, energy and land costs associated with food production would go up by somewhere between 10-100x. The current population of this planet could not and can not exist without modern agriculture.
  - DoreenMichele 8y ago
    Not everyone sees it that way. https://www.treehugger.com/lawn-garden/who-knew-vegetable-gardens-could-be-so-revolutionary.html https://www.treehugger.com/lawn-garden/who-knew-vegetable-ga... https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/home_garden/victory-gardens-a-model-for-a-more-sustainable-food-future/2011/05/18/AGsc2MBH_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.973c9120be70 https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/home_garden/victory...
    - kuzehanka 8y ago
      I don't think you have any grasp of the efficiency gains brought by modern agriculture and its scale. I actually grew up on an old school farm and it took the land area equivalent of an apartment complex to feed our one family all year round. Tending to it was almost a full time job for 6 of the 12 months of each year. This is how people have been living for hundreds of years, the math is pretty well understood. If you have anything better than a pair of op-eds to show that home gardening can be made 10-100x more efficient than it was a generation ago, I would love to see. My fruit+veg garden is a fun hobby and is quite large and healthy, but there is no way it could feed me for a year, never mind my family.
smurv 8y ago
> I'm not so sure I understand the literature on antibiotic use in livestock and I happily eat meat without thinking about what drugs the animals were given. It's the same principle. Feed the livestock with antibiotics, be it for treating a disease or making them grow faster, and you'll eventually end up with multidrug resistant bacteria like salmonella and e coli in your food.

Alex3917 8y ago

> What should I do with respect to azole fungicides and my grocery-shopping decisions? I would avoid using non-organic citrus for zest. Conventional lemons and limes get covered in antifungal drugs before getting covered again in wax. So you probably don’t want to be eating the outside.

nickysielicki 8y ago

> and I'm generally on board with limiting my own use of antibiotics (e.g. not asking a physician for an antibiotic prescription for a minor illness that is most likely viral). I, on the other hand, have an illegal supply of powerful antibiotics and antifungals sitting in my medicine cabinet. They're technically for fish, but do the math: there are only a handful of factories making these pills in the world, and the pills are indistinguishable. I don't feel guilty about it in the slightest. There has been a fundamental change in the role of doctors and healthcare professionals in the past 30 years, and I don't like it. You can go to a doctor, and you can both agree that you have a certain infection, and the doctor will refuse to prescribe a drug which all parties know will cure the infection. I think that's a new development in medical practice. So that's why I have fish medicine. Because when I'm sick for 3 weeks and still getting worse, fuck the greater good, I'm getting mine. And that's why you should take fish medicine, too: because as long as there are people like me, you're fighting a lost cause.

DanBC 8y ago
But you in your home are unlikely to be able to diagnose whether an illness is bacterial or viral, and so sometimes you will be exposing yourself to anti-biotics for no reason. That's not a risk-free option. You might be happy with the amount of risk, but I doubt you know what the level of risk actually is. > doctor will refuse to prescribe a drug which all parties know will cure the infection Mostly it's doctors saying "we don't know if this is viral or bacterial, and by the time the tests come back it will have cleared up", or they're saying "this is a self limiting condition with no long lasting effects and taking antibiotics will shorten the duration by only half a day".
matthewmacleod 8y ago
You can go to a doctor, and you can both agree that you have a certain infection, and the doctor will refuse to prescribe a drug which all parties know will cure the infection That’s really not a thing that’s happening. You might find a doctor reticent to throw antibiotics at minor infections, but that’s because of their side effects rather than anything to do with antibiotic resistance. In any case, even if there are a small number of people misusing antibiotics, it’s likely that the effect of their use in farming is far more harmful in the whole.

DoreenMichele 8y ago

let's suppose I care about slowing the development of drug-resistant fungi. As an individual, what can I do? Grow some of your own food so you can control what goes on it. Reduce your use of harsh chemicals generally in life/at home. Skip particle board furnishings. Stick to glass, metal, hard plastic and real wood. Eat right and exercise as your first line of defense for your own health. /2 cents

kuzehanka 8y ago
> Grow some of your own food so you can control what goes on it. This is laughable. Growing your own food is a cute hobby, but if it was actually adopted at scale, the resource, energy and land costs associated with food production would go up by somewhere between 10-100x. The current population of this planet could not and can not exist without modern agriculture.
- DoreenMichele 8y ago
  Not everyone sees it that way. https://www.treehugger.com/lawn-garden/who-knew-vegetable-gardens-could-be-so-revolutionary.html https://www.treehugger.com/lawn-garden/who-knew-vegetable-ga... https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/home_garden/victory-gardens-a-model-for-a-more-sustainable-food-future/2011/05/18/AGsc2MBH_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.973c9120be70 https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/home_garden/victory...
  - kuzehanka 8y ago
    I don't think you have any grasp of the efficiency gains brought by modern agriculture and its scale. I actually grew up on an old school farm and it took the land area equivalent of an apartment complex to feed our one family all year round. Tending to it was almost a full time job for 6 of the 12 months of each year. This is how people have been living for hundreds of years, the math is pretty well understood. If you have anything better than a pair of op-eds to show that home gardening can be made 10-100x more efficient than it was a generation ago, I would love to see. My fruit+veg garden is a fun hobby and is quite large and healthy, but there is no way it could feed me for a year, never mind my family.

smurv 8y ago

> I'm not so sure I understand the literature on antibiotic use in livestock and I happily eat meat without thinking about what drugs the animals were given. It's the same principle. Feed the livestock with antibiotics, be it for treating a disease or making them grow faster, and you'll eventually end up with multidrug resistant bacteria like salmonella and e coli in your food.