Welsh stars are backing a global campaign to highlight the threat of antibiotic resistance.  

Former Wales international rugby referee Nigel Owens and Miss Wales Millie-Mae Adams are both speaking out about one of the world’s biggest killers. One person dies every six seconds due to infections associated with antibiotic resistance. 

Nigel Owens, who farms in South Wales, said: "This is a problem we must tackle now before it gets worse. Antibiotics are vital for fighting infections in people.

"As a farmer, I know how important they are for the health of our animals, too. We have to keep them working – and that means only using them when and as prescribed by a professional.” 

Millie-Mae Adams who, as a medical student, said: "Routine treatments such as chemotherapy, organ transplants and joint replacements will no longer be possible if the antibiotics needed to make them safe stop working. 

“Antibiotics are a precious resource, and we need to treat them that way. We must all act now to slow the spread of antibiotic resistance.” 

Antibiotic resistance happens when bacteria find a way to defeat the drugs designed to kill them. Whenever we use antibiotics, we give the bacteria a chance to fight back. The overuse of antibiotics in recent years means they're becoming less effective.  

Dr Eleri Davies, deputy medical director and head of the healthcare associated infection and antimicrobial resistance programme at Public Health Wales, said: “Our data shows that one in six cases of sepsis in Wales are resistant to our first-choice antibiotic. If sepsis is not treated early, it can turn into septic shock and cause your organs to fail, which can be fatal.  

“One in three urinary tract infections are also resistant to one of our first-choice antibiotics. This can result in longer symptoms, discomfort and can lead to kidney infections as well as sepsis. 

“We can and must act now to combat antibiotic resistance. For the public, this means only taking antibiotics when they’re prescribed by a healthcare professional and never sharing them with others or saving them for later.”