Where did superbugs come from?
Antibiotic-resistant bacteria may change the health landscape—for good.
Jan, 2026
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Slide 1
With all the media exposure superbugs have gotten in recent years, chances are you’ve heard the term. Superbugs are strains of infection-causing bacteria—including everything from staph to E. coli—that have become resistant to antibiotics. They’re an increasingly serious public health threat in the United States. and around the world. So, with all the advances of modern medicine, just how did this happen?
Written byAna Lopez.
Medically reviewed byJoanne Perron, MD.
Sources: World Health Organization. Antimicrobial Resistance. November 21 + 7
- World Health Organization. Antimicrobial Resistance. November 21, 2023.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About Antimicrobial Resistance. April 22, 2024.
- National Institutes of Health. How Sulfa Drugs Work. March 12, 2012.
- USDA. Penicillin Opening of an Era. February 8, 2024.
- Minnesota Department of Health. About MRSA. October 20, 2022.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2019 Antibiotic Resistance Threats Report. July 16, 2024.
- World Health Organization. Action needed now to prevent a post-antibiotic future: WHO. November 16, 2015.
- Pew Trusts. Superbugs: A Global Health Threat. March 3, 2022.
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