Salmonella, Staph, E.coli, and other common pathogens have the ability to pass along to other strains their drug-resistant genes. Worldwide, it is estimated that over 50 million people are infected with drug-resistant strains of the bacteria.
New report links European travel to U.S. drug-resistant strains.
Drug-resistant strains of Malaria are found in Thailand, Cambodia, Burma, and Vietnam. Drug-resistant E.coli is found in Japan, the U.S., and Korea. The existance of these mutated pathogens, and others, are explained to a large degree by the overuse and misuse of antibiotics. Especially is this true in the wealthier countries like the U.S., where healthy chickens and cattle are routinely fed antibiotics, and both children and adults are routinely prescribed antibiotics for the common cold or flu. In the healthy intestinal tract, dozens of different species of bacteria compete for nutrients.