Staphylococci and yeasts such as Candida albicans, which causes thrush, were also kept at bay.

BBC: Bacteria may be added to tampons

Particularly worrying: Bacteria called staphylococci, which cause many of the deadliest infections that occur in already-sick patients in hospitals, are becoming resistant to existing drugs.

FORBES: Testing Antibiotics In Kids

Some doctors paint a scary worst-case scenario: A flu pandemic breaks out and beats down the immune systems of millions of people, and then staphylococci--the hospital strain and the nastier variant in the community--run wild on a killing spree.

FORBES: Germ Warfare