Pfizer and other big pharmaceutical corporations are fueling the boom in drug-resistant superbugs that could kill millions of people. These antibiotic-resistant bacteria have become one of the biggest health threats we face today.
That is the conclusion revealed by the new SumOfUs report< /a>, after months of analyzing the shadowy supply chain of pharmaceutical powerhouses. The report shows that Pfizer puts its economic interests before the health of users, supplying antibiotics from dangerous Chinese factories (which seriously violate environmental and safety measures).
These Asian factories dump waste directly into rivers and waterways, creating a prime environment for antibiotic-resistant superbugs. The World Health Organization has already raised alarm bells upon seeing the growing and rapid evolution worldwide of these superbugs. The director general of the UK health department has called antibiotic resistance a “catastrophic threat” that could set modern healthcare back by up to 200 years, and kill millions of people around the world. Experts say that approximately 10 million people could die every year from 2050 onwards from this threat. For example, easily curable diseases such as gonorrhea and pneumonia could become untreatable, and we would return to the ancient times when a simple infection in a small cut could mean death.
And now, for the first time, we know that big pharmaceutical companies like Pfizer are behind this health disaster. Corporate profits will always trump our health, unless we inform society of this scandal and take steps to change this critical situation.
To this end, the platform Sumofus has promoted an initiative to demand that Pfizer immediately cease its relationship with those types of companies that are causing this alarming situation. They have also created a website to donate money for this cause. The goal is to get $100,000.
The overprescription of antibiotics and their widespread use on factory farms are two of the known causes of antibiotic resistance. However, the pollution generated by the pharmaceutical industry, and its corresponding mass production of antibiotics, is a major culprit that is often overlooked. By dumping pharmaceutical waste into rivers, these factories create huge breeding grounds for superbugs. And these are the factories that Pfizer, McKesson, Teva and other Western pharmaceutical giants are buying.
This is not a problem unique to China or Pfizer customers. In fact, today’s modern air transport leads to the rapid spread of infectious diseases. The infectious superbugs found in the waste dumped by these polluting factories in China quickly enter the bodies of children, adults and the elderly around the world, with fatal consequences.
The reason why all this happens is very simple. Pfizer makes more money by buying cheap, mass-produced antibiotics with non-existent environmental and safety procedures. And until now, no one knew. Once the problem is known, there are no more excuses. At Naider we are also now a little more aware of the problem and we also want to join the awareness and complaint campaign.