It’s not just pesticides that are wiping out bee pollinators… scientists now find that ANTIBIOTICS have a 50% kill rate of honey bees
Tuesday, January 08, 2019 by: Russel Davis
(Natural News) Antibiotic treatment may actually do more harm than good for honeybees, according to a recent study. Beekeepers spray honeybee colonies with antibiotics to help stave off foul brood. This treatment is typically done to beehives several times a year to prevent bacterial infections that may damage the larvae.
To test the effects of antibiotics on honeybees, researchers from The University of Texas at Austin examined hundreds of honeybees that were fed with either antibiotic-containing syrup or plain syrup. The results showed that only one-third of honeybees that received antibiotics were still alive three days after their reintroduction to the hive, compared with about two-thirds of untreated honeybees. Study data revealed that honeybees exposed to antibiotic treatment had significantly lower levels of naturally occurring gut microbes, which facilitate nutrition absorption and eliminate toxins and pathogens. Researchers said antibiotics cleared out beneficial gut bacteria in treated honeybees, which in turn resulted in the proliferation of harmful gut bacteria such as Serratia — a pathogenic bacterium that affects both animals and humans. The increased mortality in treated honeybees might be caused by the elimination of gut microbes that provide natural protection against dangerous infections, researchers added.
https://www.naturalnews.com/2019-01-08-antibiotics-have-a-50-kill-rate-of-honey-bee.html
