Gastrointestinal infections and other gut problems can become a chronic, long-term problem as we lose the ability to naturally regenerate intestinal stem cells, the source of all new cells in the gut.

The drugs interfere with 'first-line' immune cells—known as neutrophils—and they also weaken the intestinal barrier which stops invading bugs. As a result, we're much more susceptible to 'severe infection', said Koji Watanabe from the University of Virginia School of Medicine.

This is because antibiotics destroy the 'good' bacteria in the gut that protect against infections and inflammation, and inflammation is the key to many chronic diseases, from arthritis, heart problems and cancer.

Although medicine accepts that over-use of antibiotics leads to resistance and 'super bugs', it can also be the gateway drug to most of the chronic diseases that afflict the West.

People taking the drugs for two months or longer were 32 per cent more likely to develop cardiovascular disease, say researchers who reviewed a study involving around 36,500 women.

And it's because the milk contains immune cells—and not proteins as everyone had thought—that makes this protection for life possible.

Candida albicans is a yeast infection that causes inflammation in the brain and leads to mild and temporary memory problems. The yeast causes granuloma-type structures that are similar to plaques seen in Alzheimer's sufferers.

Additives in the foods, and especially tBHQ (tert-butylhydroquinone), hamper the immune response so it can't fight the cells that have been infected. As the immune system is supposed to work hand-in-glove with the vaccine, the additives make the vaccine itself less effective.

The herb, Andrographis, is being tested as a natural remedy against colds and flu—and treating common problems like these with antibiotics is bringing closer the era of the drug-resistant superbugs.

It's already known that fluoroquinolones, which include Levaquin, Cipro and Floxin, can cause serious nerve damage, but now researchers have confirmed that they also trigger aortic aneurysms, bulges in the aorta that can rupture, leading to life-threatening internal bleeding.

The NSAID (non-steroidal, anti-inflammatory drugs) painkillers make Clostridium difficile infection more likely, and worsen the symptoms, which can include diarrhea, stomach pains and fatigue; it's also one of the most dangerous infections caught in hospitals and care homes, with the US's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimating that 15,000 Americans die each year as a direct result of infection.