Bacteria play an essential role in recycling nutrients, for example fixing nitrogen from the atmosphere into the soil. Bacteria are used to make a wide range of food products. The most important bacteria in food manufacturing are Lactobacillus species, also referred to as lactic bacteria.

Types of Probiotics and What They Do

• Lactobacillus. In the body, lactobacillus bacteria are normally found in the digestive, urinary, and genital systems.
• Bifidobacteria. Bifidobacteria make up most of the “good” bacteria living in the gut.
• Streptococcus thermophilus.
• Saccharomyces boulardii.

Microorganisms in food production Nature uses microorganisms to carry out fermentation processes, and for thousands of years mankind has used yeasts, moulds and bacteria to make food products such as bread, beer, wine, vinegar, yoghurt and cheese, as well as fermented fish, meat and vegetables.

For example, each human body hosts 10 microorganisms for every human cell, and these microbes contribute to digestion, produce vitamin K, promote development of the immune system, and detoxify harmful chemicals. And, of course, microbes are essential to making many foods we enjoy, such as bread, cheese, and wine.

• Microorganisms are very useful in our daily lives as they are used in:
• Food: Fermented food and beverages.
• Medicines: To produce antibiotics, vaccines, hormones etc.
• Industry: To produce pigments, acids, enzymes, biofertilizers, biopesticides, to degrade harmful substances such as plastic.

Microbes cause infectious diseases such as flu and measles. There is also strong evidence that microbes may contribute to many non–infectious chronic diseases such as some forms of cancer and coronary heart disease. Different diseases are caused by different types of micro-organisms.

Harmful bacteria are called pathogenic bacteria because they cause disease and illnesses like strep throat, staph infections, cholera, tuberculosis, and food poisoning.

Benefits of Bacteria

• Creating products, such as ethanol and enzymes.
• Making drugs, such as antibiotics and vaccines.
• Making biogas, such as methane.
• Cleaning up oil spills and toxic wastes.
• Killing plant pests.
• Transferring normal genes to human cells in gene therapy.
• Fermenting foods (see Figure below).

Bacterial disease

• Bacteria.
• Infectious disease.
• Cholera.
• Leprosy.
• Tuberculosis.
• Plague.
• Syphilis.
• Anthrax.

Antibiotics are used to kill or inhibit bacteria growth….You may also be able to eradicate bacteria in the home with a homemade cleaning agent made of:

1. oregano essential oil.
2. vinegar.
3. water.
4. lemon.

Bacterial gastroenteritis infections usually last for one to three days. In some cases, infections can last for weeks and be harmful if left untreated. Seek treatment as soon as you show symptoms of an infection to stop the infection from spreading.

Bacterial infections are often treated with topical antibiotics applied directly to the skin or with oral antibiotics. If the strain of bacteria is resistant to treatment, treating the infection may require intravenous antibiotics administered in the hospital.

Certain bacteria commonly live on the skin of many people without causing harm. However, these bacteria can cause skin infections if they enter the body through cuts, open wounds, or other breaks in the skin. Symptoms may include redness, swelling, pain, or pus.

What does a fungal rash look like? A fungal skin infection often looks bright red and can spread across a large area. A fungal skin rash may also have characteristics including: Color more intense at the border.

Antifungal medications work to treat fungal infections. They can either kill fungi directly or prevent them from growing and thriving. Antifungal drugs are available as OTC treatments or prescription medications, and come in a variety of forms, including: creams or ointments.