Question

Which is a plausible effect of taking oral antibiotics? the antibiotics could harm your own body cells. the antibiotics could interfere with your body's own ability to produce antibiotics, and actually end up prolonging the infection. the antibiotics could destroy viruses that have infected your body. the antibiotics could unintentionally kill good bacteria living in your intestines, leaving you more susceptible to infection by pathogenic bacteria?

Answer 1

The answer is the antibiotics could unintentionally kill good bacteria living in your intestines, leaving you more susceptible to infection by pathogenic bacteria.

Antibiotics will indiscriminately kill any of the bacteria they come into contact with that have similar characteristics to the pathogen being targeted. This can cause trouble because many helpful bacteria live in your large intestine. Antibiotics target bacteria and not viruses. If you take antibiotics it is important to restore any good bacteria in your gut by taking probiotics at the same.