Most people who believe they're allergic to penicillin aren't

A new study has found that most people who believe they're allergic to penicillin... aren't.

Back in April, the World Health Organization announced the world is facing a crisis in antibiotic resistance which, according to them, is worse than the AIDs epidemic. That crisis is making it more difficult for doctors to prescribe antibiotics,and even more difficult for patients who suffer from a penicillin allergy.

Researchers from the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida set out to see if people who claim to be allergic to the antibiotic, commonly prescribed for infections, are actually allergic to it.

The lead author of the study wrote, "A large number of people in our study who had a history of penicillin allergy were actually not allergic."

In the first study, researchers tested the allergies of 384 participants. While all of them claimed to be allergic to penicillin, only six percent of them tested positive. In a second study, 38 participants underwent penicillin skin testing and all 38 tested negative for the allergy.

According to the Daily Mail, most people who believe they're allergic to penicillin had a bad reaction in the past, but confused the side effects with an allergy. Patients who falsely believe they're allergic are basically throwing their money away as alternative drugs are generally much more expensive.

The researchers of this study recommend anyone who believes they are allergic to get tested.

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