Antibiotics are substances that kill or interfere with the growth of micro-organisms, especially bacteria. They have no effect on a virus. The descriptions below outline the differences between bacterial and viral infections, enabling you to make better decisions about taking antibiotics.
Bacteria
- Bacteria are the simplest and most numerous form of life on earth. Neither plant nor animal, they have only one cell.
- A major property of bacteria is their ability to reproduce very quickly. They can grow from one to thousands in a few hours.
- Bacteria live everywhere, from the tops of mountains to the bottom of the sea, from the guts of animals to the frozen rocks and ice of Antarctica.
- Most bacteria are harmless to humans, and many types are helpful.
- Pathogenic bacteria are the ones that cause diseases.
Virus
- Viruses are not bacteria or an independent living organism.
- A virus cannot survive without a living cell.
- When a virus infects tissues in our body, the infection leads to the production and secretion of a substance called interferons.
- Interferons are proteins that interact with adjacent cells that help adjacent cells become more resistant to infection by the virus. If the resistance isn't good enough, you get sick.
- Then the body's immune system takes over and fights the infection by killing the virus on the outside of the cells and the infected cells, too.
The HIV virus is a different kind of virus that attacks and stops the development of the cells of the immune system, which are necessary to prevent infection. The HIV virus, when left untreated, can lead to severe immuno-suppression or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). When you have AIDS, the body is unable to fight any infection. Opportunistic illnesses, such as cancer, nerve disorders, and other infections make the person very ill.