FDA Says Some Antibiotics in Livestock Will Be Limited

歌曲 FDA Says Some Antibiotics in Livestock Will Be Limited
歌手 英语听力
专辑 VOA慢速英语：农业报道

歌词

[00:00.10] From VOA Learning English,
[00:02.59] this is the Agriculture Report.
[00:05.50] Regulators in the United States
[00:08.01] are asking companies that make antibiotic drugs
[00:11.52] to tell farmers to stop using
[00:14.72] some of the drugs on livestock.
[00:17.37] Antibiotics are medicines
[00:19.73] use to fight bacteria and infections.
[00:23.67] Large animal farms around the world
[00:26.63] often use small amount of antibiotics
[00:30.12] to help healthy animals grow faster with less feed.
[00:34.64] They put the antibiotics in the food and water
[00:38.43] they give to cows, chickens and pigs.
[00:41.86] Opponents of this use of antibiotic say
[00:45.29] it adds to worldwide resistance to such drugs.
[00:49.18] Public health experts say,
[00:51.51] using an antibiotic on an animal gives bacteria the chance
[00:56.44] to built double defense against the drug.
[00:59.80] This makes antibiotics less effective
[01:02.85] when they are used to fight diseases in humans.
[01:06.77] Last month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration
[01:11.28] asked drug companies to voluntarily change the words
[01:15.73] on the containers of antibiotics so far use in farm animals.
[01:21.63] Michael Taylor is the agency's Deputy Commissioner.
[01:25.64] "With these changes, there will be fewer approved uses,
[01:28.68] and the remaining uses will be under tighter control
[01:31.34] to minimize the impact on resistance," said Taylor.
[01:33.91] The decision by the FDA to ask
[01:37.06] rather than order the drug companies to make the changes
[01:40.79] has angered some activists.
[01:43.32] But the FDA said, changes would be made more quickly
[01:48.24] if it ask the drug companies to voluntarily change
[01:52.65] how they use antibiotics.
[01:55.17] Dimitri Drekonja is a doctor
[01:57.79] with the Infectious Diseases Society of America.
[02:01.33] He supports the FDA's decision to ask for voluntary changes,
[02:07.42] but he is not sure the drug companies
[02:10.43] will do what the agency has asked.
[02:13.57] "If this voluntary effort is taken up
[02:17.15] by the entire industry and everybody goes along with it,
[02:20.07] then it will actually be a needed first
[02:21.58] and potentially last step.
[02:23.19] Will that happen? I have my doubts," Drekonja added.
[02:25.81] Some large drug companies have already agreed to make the changes.
[02:31.03] Liz Wagstrom is the Chief Veterinarian
[02:34.50] at the National Pork Producers Council.
[02:37.66] He says the pig farming industry
[02:40.88] is preparing for a change in the way it uses antibiotics,
[02:45.99] even it will cost some farmers money.
[02:49.26] "We may lose some efficiency.
[02:51.01] We may have some animals that may not grow quite as quickly
[02:54.19] or take more grain to reach their full weight, " said Wagstrom.
[02:57.44] She also says the changes may mean
[03:00.49] farmers will have more sick animals.
[03:03.12] Doctor Drekonja says it may be difficult to measure
[03:07.59] how the new policy affects drug resistances.
[03:11.41] "It would be great if there was sort-of like a dashboard
[03:14.03] and you could watch the needle drop
[03:15.95] in the amount of antibiotics used and then watch the next gauge,
[03:18.97] which is the national resistance and see what happens there.
[03:21.73] We don’t have two simple gauges like that," Drekonja says.
[03:24.67] He says there is a lack of good information
[03:28.03] on the amounts of antibiotics used on farms,
[03:31.61] as well as by doctors.
[03:33.59] Some bacteria have continued to be resistant to drugs for years
[03:38.91] even after they have been banned from animal use.
[03:42.92] But doctor say they have been taking more steps
[03:46.89] to limit their use of antibiotics with humans,
[03:50.46] and they believe farmers should do the same.
[03:54.33] And that's the Agriculture Report.
[03:57.64] I'm Bob Doughty.

拼音

[00:00.10] From VOA Learning English,
[00:02.59] this is the Agriculture Report.
[00:05.50] Regulators in the United States
[00:08.01] are asking companies that make antibiotic drugs
[00:11.52] to tell farmers to stop using
[00:14.72] some of the drugs on livestock.
[00:17.37] Antibiotics are medicines
[00:19.73] use to fight bacteria and infections.
[00:23.67] Large animal farms around the world
[00:26.63] often use small amount of antibiotics
[00:30.12] to help healthy animals grow faster with less feed.
[00:34.64] They put the antibiotics in the food and water
[00:38.43] they give to cows, chickens and pigs.
[00:41.86] Opponents of this use of antibiotic say
[00:45.29] it adds to worldwide resistance to such drugs.
[00:49.18] Public health experts say,
[00:51.51] using an antibiotic on an animal gives bacteria the chance
[00:56.44] to built double defense against the drug.
[00:59.80] This makes antibiotics less effective
[01:02.85] when they are used to fight diseases in humans.
[01:06.77] Last month, the U. S. Food and Drug Administration
[01:11.28] asked drug companies to voluntarily change the words
[01:15.73] on the containers of antibiotics so far use in farm animals.
[01:21.63] Michael Taylor is the agency' s Deputy Commissioner.
[01:25.64] " With these changes, there will be fewer approved uses,
[01:28.68] and the remaining uses will be under tighter control
[01:31.34] to minimize the impact on resistance," said Taylor.
[01:33.91] The decision by the FDA to ask
[01:37.06] rather than order the drug companies to make the changes
[01:40.79] has angered some activists.
[01:43.32] But the FDA said, changes would be made more quickly
[01:48.24] if it ask the drug companies to voluntarily change
[01:52.65] how they use antibiotics.
[01:55.17] Dimitri Drekonja is a doctor
[01:57.79] with the Infectious Diseases Society of America.
[02:01.33] He supports the FDA' s decision to ask for voluntary changes,
[02:07.42] but he is not sure the drug companies
[02:10.43] will do what the agency has asked.
[02:13.57] " If this voluntary effort is taken up
[02:17.15] by the entire industry and everybody goes along with it,
[02:20.07] then it will actually be a needed first
[02:21.58] and potentially last step.
[02:23.19] Will that happen? I have my doubts," Drekonja added.
[02:25.81] Some large drug companies have already agreed to make the changes.
[02:31.03] Liz Wagstrom is the Chief Veterinarian
[02:34.50] at the National Pork Producers Council.
[02:37.66] He says the pig farming industry
[02:40.88] is preparing for a change in the way it uses antibiotics,
[02:45.99] even it will cost some farmers money.
[02:49.26] " We may lose some efficiency.
[02:51.01] We may have some animals that may not grow quite as quickly
[02:54.19] or take more grain to reach their full weight, " said Wagstrom.
[02:57.44] She also says the changes may mean
[03:00.49] farmers will have more sick animals.
[03:03.12] Doctor Drekonja says it may be difficult to measure
[03:07.59] how the new policy affects drug resistances.
[03:11.41] " It would be great if there was sortof like a dashboard
[03:14.03] and you could watch the needle drop
[03:15.95] in the amount of antibiotics used and then watch the next gauge,
[03:18.97] which is the national resistance and see what happens there.
[03:21.73] We don' t have two simple gauges like that," Drekonja says.
[03:24.67] He says there is a lack of good information
[03:28.03] on the amounts of antibiotics used on farms,
[03:31.61] as well as by doctors.
[03:33.59] Some bacteria have continued to be resistant to drugs for years
[03:38.91] even after they have been banned from animal use.
[03:42.92] But doctor say they have been taking more steps
[03:46.89] to limit their use of antibiotics with humans,
[03:50.46] and they believe farmers should do the same.
[03:54.33] And that' s the Agriculture Report.
[03:57.64] I' m Bob Doughty.