A doctor in Taiwan posted this message on social media: “Doctor, my mother is a Buddhist, please don’t use antiseptic antibiotics.” The doctor said, “This is the wildest request I’ve heard since I became a physician. The actual fact is that you can find a lot of people who are not able to get a good deal on a lot of things. Antibiotics are secondary metabolites of microorganisms that can selectively inhibit the life activities of certain organisms at low concentrations, and their chemical semi-synthetic or fully synthetic derivatives. The antibiotics used to be called “antimicrobials” because of their bactericidal effect, but with the development of medicine, scientists found that in addition to its bactericidal effect, it also has a good effect on other pathogenic microorganisms such as mold, mycoplasma and chlamydia, so it has the name of antibiotics. There are various types of antibiotics, which can be distinguished according to their synthesis, chemical structure, usage and so on, and the simplest one is according to their synthesis, which can be divided into biosynthesis, chemical synthesis and semi-synthesis. For example, penicillin is a biosynthetic antibiotic, while roxithromycin is a semi-synthetic antibiotic. Antibiotics are commonly used in clinical medicine nowadays, and they are very effective for diseases caused by bacteria, mycoplasma, chlamydia and other pathogenic microorganisms, but they are not effective for diseases caused by viruses and trauma, and different antibiotics have different antibacterial spectrums, and excessive use of antibiotics can cause adverse reactions, so antibiotics must be used under the guidance of a professional physician, and must not be abused. This is to avoid delaying treatment, aggravating symptoms, and even increasing bacterial resistance, which can have serious consequences. Finally, let’s go back to the opening news article. How did the doctor respond to such a “difficult” question? In fact, in Buddhist teachings, bacteria do not belong to sentient beings and are not part of the cycle of reincarnation; so please remember to listen to your doctor and actively cooperate with treatment at all times!