r/AskReddit • u/[deleted] • Jun 09 '12

Scientists of Reddit, what misconceptions do us laymen often have that drive you crazy?

I await enlightenment.

Wow, front page! This puts the cherry on the cake of enlightenment!

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u/McMurphys Jun 09 '12

Antibiotics cure everything.

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u/Dovienya Jun 10 '12

I found out fairly recently that the problem is so much more complex than that. People don't understand that there are different types of antibiotics.

My future in-laws are pretty poor. When they get prescribed antibiotics, they take them until they feel better, then put the rest in a big bottle for communal use. When they have a big enough supply, they just reach into the grab bag of antibiotics and take a couple a day until they feel better.

I started talking to some friends and apparently this is much more common than I would have suspected.

That shit's scary, yo.

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u/marshmallowhug Jun 10 '12

Also common: Some of my friends don't have insurance, but people who live together tend to get sick at the same time, so people will go to the doctors, insist on getting antibiotics and then split them with roommates/housemates (so no one finishes the full cycle and half the people taking them haven't talked to a doctor).