Warning that using bleach at home may be fuelling superbugs

Antibiotic resistance is responsible for millions of deaths every year globally Scientist fear chemical mixtures, that kill bacteria, could cause drug-resistance Using bleach and alcohol in hospitals and homes could be fuelling drug-resistant bacteria, experts have warned. But scientists have warned their widespread and unregulated use may actually increase antibiotic resistance, meaning germs develop the ability to defeat drugs designed to kill them. Writing in the journal Nature Microbiology, the authors said that low levels of biocides remaining in the environment due to their widespread use might promote antibiotic resistance – which they described as an 'alarming public health issue'. Infections such as pneumonia, tuberculosis, gonorrhoea and salmonella are becoming harder to treat as antibiotics become less effective, experts say Antibiotic resistance is considered one of the biggest threats to health globally - responsible for 1.3 million deaths a year – with the over-prescribing of antibiotics partly to blame.