To correctly answer IELTS Reading questions, one must first understand the terminology. Antibiotic resistance occurs when bacteria change in response to the use of these medicines. They become "superbugs" – bacteria that no longer respond to the drugs designed to kill them.
The overuse and misuse of antibiotics have accelerated the development of resistance. Many consumers have come to take antibiotics for granted. As Linda McCaig, a scientist at the CDC, comments, "Many consumers have an expectation that when they're ill, antibiotics are the answer. Most of the time the illness is viral, and antibiotics are not the answer. This large burden of antibiotics is certainly selecting resistant bacteria." A CDC report cited nearly six million antibiotic prescriptions for sinusitis alone in 1985, rising to nearly 13 million in 1992.
The text highlights that patients often request antibiotics for viral infections like the common cold, even though the drugs are ineffective against them. Key Concepts from the Passage Horizontal Gene Transfer: To correctly answer IELTS Reading questions, one must
The economic burden is equally alarming. Treating resistant infections requires longer hospital stays, more expensive drugs, and intensive care. The World Bank estimates that by 2050, AMR could cause $1 trillion to $3.4 trillion in annual GDP losses, pushing up to 28 million people into extreme poverty, particularly in low- and middle-income countries.
The core of the problem lies in basic biology. As the IELTS reading passage explains, antibiotic resistance is actually an outcome of evolution. Whenever we use an antibiotic, it creates a "selective pressure." The drug kills off the weak bacteria, but any that have natural mutations allowing them to survive are left behind to multiply. These "renegade" bacteria can increase their numbers a million-fold in a single day, quickly becoming the dominant strain. The overuse and misuse of antibiotics have accelerated
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: Companies prefer investing in chronic condition treatments over antibiotics due to higher profit margins, or a more lucrative market. Most of the time the illness is viral,
Paragraph A opens with the discovery of penicillin by Alexander Fleming, describing it as a historic event that "marked the dawn of the antibiotic era" and transformed modern medicine.
: Paragraph A opens with historical context: "The discovery of penicillin by Alexander Fleming in 1928 marked the dawn of the antibiotic era..."
→ Paragraph E
Complete the summary below. Choose from the passage for each answer. Write your answers in boxes 10–13 on your answer sheet. The Multifaceted Solution to AMR