According to the World Health Organization (WHO), due to poor sanitation and sewage disposal means, almost 80% of all disease is waterborne. It could be you, it could be me... Everyone is vulnerable. Even the affluent are at risk as they lack the immunity others down the social ladder have. As many as 73 million man days are lost due to waterborne diseases costing the government about Rs9, 000 crores a year! Between 4, 00,000 and 5, 00,000 children under five years die of diarrhea, according to a report by the Planning Commission.

And yet, there is no need to panic. All we need to do is to clean up. Get the Residents’ Welfare Associations or local health officials to coordinate efforts. Waterborne diseases are challenging healthcare systems.

Another way, according to a report sponsored by the World Health Organization and UNICEF is to improve sanitation. Typhoid was common in the developed world till the 19th century. As sanitation improved, it disappeared. But just digging more pumps is not the answer: pumps should not be located near toilets or bathrooms. But all this is for the administration. There is a lot you can do. Watch what you eat and drink. Drink only boiled or bottled water, avoid fruit juice and cut fruits from roadside vendors.


Things you must avoid

An inflammation of the mucous membrane of the stomach and intestines, this is a bacterial and a viral infection, so you can get it from an infected person too. Watch the water you drink!

What causes it?

Germs and viruses cause bacterial gastroenteritis while viruses like the Rotavirus cause viral gastroenteritis. It is often caused when you don’t wash your hands well on your way out of the toilet, or from contaminated food or even by touching dirty objects. Viral gastroenteritis is more common in summer because viruses breed easily in high temperatures.

How it shows up

Intense abdominal pain or cramps, nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, weakness, fever and intense diarrhea mean you may have acute viral or bacterial gastroenteritis. It is worst in summer and during the onset of rains. The symptoms manifest in one to three days from the onset of infection.

Beating back the bug

Severe gastroenteritis can result in dehydration. Drink lots of water. If you are vomiting, wait for around 30 minutes before you start drinking fluids. Sip a little fluid at a time till you are sure you can retain it. Avoid milk and dairy products, fruit, juices and raw vegetables. Go for simple, home-cooked food that can be easily digested. If diarrhea is acute, reach out for ORS solution from sachets available at any chemist’s. Or make a solution with one fistful of sugar, three pinches of salt and one pinch of baking soda in a liter of water. If diarrhea gets worse, intravenous fluids will have to be given as loss of fluids and electrolytes can lead to renal failure.

Who is most at risk?

The elderly, pregnant women and children are most vulnerable. The infection can lead to dehydration in pregnant women and must be treated immediately to prevent loss of electrolytes.

Keeping it at bay

Drink boiled water. Avoid eating out. Wash your hands thoroughly on your way out from the toilet since the organism that causes this disease lives in the digestive tract. Wash hands before eating.

Cholera

An acute intestinal infection caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholera, it spreads by water and food contaminated with human waste. The bacteria affect the intestinal lining. Consuming contaminated food or water helps it get into the small bowel, where it produces a toxin that causes diarrhea.

How it shows up

Vomiting and painless, watery, odorless diarrhea. The watery stools often have flecks of mucous or rice water stools which resemble water in which rice has been washed. In severe cases, the skin gets cold and shriveled a sign of dehydration.

Beating back the bug

Cholera spreads terror since it can lead to severe dehydration. Yet, cholera is easily treated. ORS replaces lost fluids. In severe cases, intravenous fluids may be given. If untreated, cholera can be fatal.

Keeping it at bay

Vaccinate. Boil water. Avoid food and water from unclean places.

Dysentery

Very common in India, dysentery, an inflammation of the lower bowel or colon, is caused by contaminated water.

How it shows up

Contractions of the lower abdominal muscles and loose, watery stools that result in dehydration and weakness.

Beating back the bug

All you need is ORS.

Keeping it at bay

Avoid eating or drinking water in unclean places. Boil water before drinking.

Viral Hepatitis A and E

These are viral infections, commonly known as jaundice, that cause the liver to become inflamed due to water contaminated with human waste. One attack gives you lifelong immunity.

How it shows up

Fatigue, nausea, vomiting, fever, abdominal pain, diarrhea and loss of appetite signal the start of jaundice. The eyes, skin and urine turn yellow. The liver gets enlarged.

Beating back the bug

Get yourself a liver function test. Since there is no specific medicine, doctors prescribe vitamins. Complete recovery takes four to six weeks. You can have normal food. Grandmothers prescribe sugarcane juice, but since the cane is difficult to crush at home, avoid it. Just say no to alcohol for six months after you are cured. Pregnant women with jaundice in their third trimester should immediately see the doctor.

Keeping it at bay

You can prevent Hepatitis A with a vaccine. Wash hands frequently. Drink only boiled water. Ensure sewage is properly disposed off.

Typhoid

Caused by water contaminated with human waste or food and beverages handled by an infected person, typhoid is a bacterial infection of the intestinal tract and bloodstream. It causes inflammation and ulceration in the intestines and is caused by salmonella typhus. Once the bacteria enter the person’s body, it multiplies and spreads from the intestines into the bloodstream. Worldwide, typhoid fells 17 million people every year.

How it shows up

Continuous high grade fever that does not touch normal, headache, abdominal pain and diarrhea.

Beating back the bug

If not treated, typhoid leads to complications like bleeding in the intestine. A blood culture in the second week confirms the diagnosis. Typhoid responds to antibiotics.

Keeping it at bay

Vaccination, especially if children are going swimming. Drink only boiled water. Eat fresh food. Cut fruits and salads from street vendors are eminently avoidable.

Six ways to stop the bugs: How to purify drinking water

1. Boiling

Boil drinking water

Boiling for three to five minutes is the safest method of purifying water. If the taste puts you off, pour it back and forth from one vessel to another to get oxygen back into it.

2. Distillation

This sounds complicated as it involves collecting the vapor of boiling water. Tilt the lid of the vessel to one side and collect the condensed droplets.

3. Chemical Treatments

Carry something small and inexpensive to treat your water when you hit the road. The iodine in tetraglycine hydroperiodide tablets may taste unpleasant. So, wait 20 minutes before you drink. Or opt for chlorine, which zaps microorganisms. A tablet of chorine purifies 20 liters of water. Let it stand 30 minutes before drinking. After that, hydrogen peroxide oxidizes the chlorine, and your taste buds would not know the difference.

4. Filters

Portable water filters and purifiers have fine membranes to filter out impurities including some bacteria, but they cannot filter out viruses. You could still catch Hepatitis A, which can be killed by boiling. Filters are getting increasingly user-friendly. Philips, Aqua guard, Kent—leading market brands—packs in features to make your life comfortable and safe. Their advanced UV technology and activated carbon destroy viruses, bacteria, parasites and amoebae, chlorine, volatile organic chemicals, cysts and larger micro-organisms. Reverse Osmosis filters need to be serviced every three months or so, depending on contamination.

5. Deep Ground water Purification

Although water from deep under the ground is usually safe because it goes through a natural filter on its way down, it should be boiled. The same is true for water from wells, bore wells, lakes, reservoirs, rivers and canals.

6. Solar Water Disinfection

Disinfecting water using solar energy destroys microbes. Water poured into a transparent glass bottle needs to be oxygenated with a thorough shake. Place it in full sun for about six hours. The heat and the radiation kill the germs.

Copyright © 2008 bodyhealthbeauty.org. All rights reserved.
Contact | Site Map