Many people are wary of taking antibiotics because of its possible side effects. Now, researchers have found a new way to reduce the harmful side effects of antibiotics while keeping their efficiency intact. According to a study published in the journal Nature, scientists have discovered a new approach that combines antibiotics with a protective antidote to reduce the adverse effects of antibiotics on the gut microbiome without compromising the efficiency of the drugs.

The study analyzed the effects of 144 different antibiotics on the abundance of the most common gut bacteria, and the researchers identified a novel approach that helps keep the gut microbiome healthy and reduces the harmful side effects of antibiotics.

Antibiotics have been known to cause an imbalance in the microbial communities in the human gut, leading to recurrent gastrointestinal problems caused by infections and long-term health problems such as obesity, allergies, asthma, and other inflammatory diseases. 

The researchers systematically analyzed the growth and survival of 27 different bacterial species commonly found in the gut following treatment with 144 different antibiotics. They also assessed the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) for over 800 of these antibiotic-bacteria combinations.

The results showed that the majority of gut bacteria would not be affected by commonly used antibiotic concentrations. To protect the gut microbes, the researchers combined the antibiotics erythromycin and doxycycline with a set of 1,197 pharmaceuticals to identify suitable drugs that would protect two abundant gut bacterial species from the antibiotics.

 They identified several promising drugs, including the anticoagulant dicumarol, the gout medication benzbromarone, and two anti-inflammatory drugs, tolfenamic acid and diflunisal. The study found that these drugs did not compromise the effectiveness of the antibiotics against disease-causing bacteria. This breakthrough could help prevent long-term damage caused by antibiotics while still treating bacterial infections effectively.