美国人吃鱼抗生素，是因为它比看医生便宜

美国人吃鱼抗生素，是因为它比看医生便宜

Health care costs in the United States are, well, pretty insane. A decent insurance plan helps mitigate out-of-pocket costs for certain medications, but those with no health coverage can find themselves with enormous bills and no hope of paying them down. It’s a bizarre situation and as elected officials continue to debate just how broken it all is, regular citizens are doing their best to save money where they can.

美国的医疗保健费用是相当疯狂的。一份像样的保险计划有助于降低某些药物的自付费用，但那些没有医疗保险的人可能会发现自己背负着巨额账单，而且没有希望付得起。这是一个奇怪的情况，当当选的官员继续讨论这一切有多糟糕时，普通公民正在尽最大努力存钱。

For some, that apparently means using meds intended for animals in place of prescription drugs meant for humans. As the Guardian reports, a new research effort reveals that online stores that offer cheap antibiotics meant for pet fish are a favorite of some who take the medication themselves instead.

对一些人来说，这显然意味着要使用针对动物的药物来代替针对人类的处方药。据英国《卫报》报道，一项新的研究表明，网上商店提供的廉价抗生素本来是给宠物鱼吃的，但却成了一些自己服药的人的最爱。

The study took a relatively straightforward approach to explore the likelihood of people using fish antibiotics on themselves. The team used readily available public information in the form of product reviews on websites. Many online stores that offer fish antibiotics offer customers the ability to write reviews and some of those reviews reveal the true nature of an individual’s purchase.

这项研究采用了一种相对直接的方法来探索人们对自己使用鱼类抗生素的可能性。该团队以产品评论的形式在网站上使用现成的公共信息。许多提供鱼类抗生素的网上商店为顾客提供写评论的能力，其中一些评论揭示了个人购物的真实本质。

The number of reviews of such drugs in online stores that mentioned the customer using them in their own body rather than for their animals was “small but significant.”

网上商店对这类药物的评论中，提到客户在自己身上而不是在动物身上使用这些药物的数量“虽少，但意义重大”。

The researchers suggest that the trend of using drugs meant for animals in place of prescription medications for humans is largely based around cost.

研究人员认为，用动物药物代替人类处方药的趋势很大程度上是基于成本。

“Self-medication and the availability of antibiotics without healthcare oversight might contribute to increasing antimicrobial resistance and delayed appropriate treatment,” Brandon Bookstaver, co-author of the research, explains.

该研究的合著者Brandon Bookstaver解释说:“自我用药和在没有医疗监督的情况下使用抗生素可能会增加抗菌素耐药性，推迟适当的治疗。”

“We were particularly concerned that the high volume of positive feedback on the comments about human use might encourage others to attempt to use these drugs.”

“我们特别担心的是，大量关于人类使用的正面反馈可能会鼓励其他人尝试使用这些药物。”

Making matters worse, it seems at least some of the online retailers selling such antibiotics are comfortable with the idea of their customers using them for their own needs, rather than for animals.

更糟糕的是，似乎至少有一些销售抗生素的网上零售商认为，他们的顾客是为了自己的需要，而不是为了动物。

The report notes that at least one retailer replied to a question and assured a would-be buyer that the drugs were safe for human consumption.

报告指出，至少有一家零售商回答了一个问题，并向一位潜在的买家保证，这些药物对人类消费是安全的。

It’s a difficult problem to solve, but until basic health care becomes a bit more affordable, it’s an issue that will likely continue to fester.

这是一个很难解决的问题，但在基本医疗保健变得更容易负担之前，这个问题可能会继续恶化。