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What are water-borne/faecal oral diseases? What harm do they do? What are the symptoms of water-related illnesses? How is it treated? What causes Waterborne Diseases? How are these diseases transmitted (spread)? How can we help prevent these diseases? What causes Waterborne Diseases? Causes of Waterborne Diseases: Contaminated surface water sources and large poorly functioning municipal water distribution systems contribute to transmission of waterborne bacterial diseases. Chlorination and safe water handling can eliminate the risk of waterborne bacterial diseases. Risk factors for Waterborne Diseases: see risk factors for Waterborne Diseases How are these diseases transmitted (spread)? In the vast majority of cases, people become infected when material contaminated by faeces enters their mouth. One way this can happen is through drinking contaminated water. This has been the cause of many dramatic outbreaks of faecal-oral diseases such as cholera and typhoid. However, there are many other ways in which faecal material can reach the mouth, for instance on the hands or on contaminated food. What harm do these diseases do? These diseases are extremely harmful not only to a person’s health but to their productivity, and to the welfare of the community as a whole. They: * Lead to severe illness and may be fatal, in the case of a severe attack * Lower the body’s resistance to infection and disease * Lower the body’s intake of nourishment, and may lead to malnutrition (especially in children) * Decrease individual and social productivity * Hamper children’s’ education * Hamper human resource development * Increase health expenditure These diseases attack the body in a variety of ways. The main symptoms are as follows: Typhoid fever (i) Fever, increasing gradually; (ii)Abdominal discomfort, bloating, constipation; (iii) Weakness; (iv) Diarrhoea. Giardia (i) Blood in the urine; (ii) Pain in lower belly and between the legs; (iii) After a long time the kidneys may become badly damaged causing general swelling and death. Dysentery (i) Watery diarrhoea, often with blood; (ii) Stomach cramps; (iii) Fever(iv) Liver may become enlarged and painful (after some days) Cholera (i) Diarrhoea (rice water stool); (ii) Vomiting; (iii)Dehydration. Diarrhoea (Diarrhoea can be caused by a variety of pathogens and can vary in severity. Particularly severe diarrhoea has the following characteristics) (i) Sudden onset; (ii) Explosive watery diarrhoea; (iii) Blood and mucus in the faeces; (iv) Some fever; (v) Dehydration may cause death. Hepatitis (i) Yellow urine; (ii) Vomiting; (iii) White stools; (iv) Enlarged liver; (v) Swelling of body and foot Polio (i) Headache; (ii) Slight fever; (iii) Diarrhoea; (iv) Muscular pain; (v) Limp body Worms (i) Vague abdominal pain; (ii) Nausea; (iii) Poor appetite; (iv) Vomiting – even vomiting worms sometimes; (v) Severe abdominal pains; (vi) Weight loss; (vii) Sometimes diarrhoea; (viii) Tiredness; (ix) High risk of catching other diseases; (x) Itching of the anus How is it treated? How can we help prevent these diseases? Water-borne and faecal-oral diseases can be prevented by [6], [10], [7]: * Improving the quality of drinking water at source, at the tap, or in the storage vessel * Interrupting the routes of transmission * Reducing diarrhoea helps decrease the chances of faecal-oral contamination. * Protecting food from flies interrupts the faeces-flies-food route (at a household level). * Chlorination of water interrupts the faeces-fluids-food and drinking water route (at the community level). * Increasing the quantity of water available. This allows better hygiene and can thus prevent disease transmission from contaminated hands, food, or household utensils. * Changing hygiene behaviour * Hand washing — this is the most vital component of personal hygiene in disease prevention. .Hands should be washed with soap after defecation and after cleaning and disposing of an infant’s faeces [4]. * Care in disposing of faeces. Safe and protective measures should be adopted to avoid contamination and to destroy infectious organisms while handling and disposing of infant and toddler faeces. * Proper use of latrines by adults and children. * Proper use and maintenance of water supply and sanitation systems. For example, sanitation facilities that are not properly maintained discourage the use of toilets and will allow pathogens back into the environment through leakage. * Proper maintenance of pumps and wells. Pipes and taps should always be kept clean. * Good food hygiene (food is a significant breeding ground for pathogens). Washing food prior to cooking and cooking food for long enough at a sufficiently high temperature are both important to kill harmful bacteria. * Disposing of organic and animal wastes properly to avoid flies |