What does meat have to do with Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA)? Few people realize that plump hogs on factory farms are connected to the 2 million Americans who are diagnosed with pan-resistant infections every year, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. What’s more, the FDA said in 2011 that 80 percent of all antibiotics used in the United States are used on animals meant for human consumption. The unregulated subtherapeutic (small doses over a long period of time) usage of antibiotics kills bacteria and promotes animal growth, but allows resistant bacteria to survive and thrive. Without regulation, this is becoming a growing public health threat. I was absolutely shocked to learn that we are consuming antibodies which hinder the treatment of pan-resistant infections such as MRSA. This hit home, as two of my close friends were recently hospitalized with life-threatening MRSA. We need to stop the cycle. I urge you to call your city councilmember and ask them to support the Preventing Antibiotic Resistance Act of 2013. Be sure to stop down by the Loch during lunch on Wednesday, February 5 to take a photo petition supporting solutions to reign in factory farming (courtesy of the Food and Water Watch Organization). Make it known that antibiotics should be used to treat sick animals and sick animals only.