One of the biggest breakthroughs in medicine came in the form of the compound known as penicillin, and has been attributed with the distinction of being the first antibiotic. Antibiotics function with the sole purpose of stopping the growth of bacteria in the body while also destroying diseases that have been caused by bacteria as well.

However, while this type of medicinal practices has cured many folks, the danger lies in the abuse (read: overuse) of antibiotics which has side-effects of their own.

So here is a list of side effects that stem from the overuse of antibiotics:

Side Effect #1: One of the most common side effects of using antibiotics in large doses is the compromise of the immune system. When one takes too many drugs, this results in the immune system attacking our body’s tissues and organs due to an inability to differentiate between our tissues and organs bacteria that reside in our bodies.

Side Effect #2: According to a study, the over-use of antibiotics in the case of women can lead to breast cancer. This study also claimed that if over a period of seventeen years, a woman was on antibiotics for more than 500 days or had over 17 prescriptions for drugs, they were more likely to get breast cancer as opposed to women who did not.

Side Effect #3: When it comes to children, it has been discovered that those who takes antibiotics in the first six months tend to suffer from allergies as soon as they hit the age of seven. In the case of ear infections, it has been observed that an excess of antibiotics is normally prescribed and not only does this increase the chances of the ear infection coming back again but it also has been considered injurious to the health of children as well.