Water Diseases
Anaemia
Even though many more people in the third world/ developing countries having this disease, Anaemia is still a very common disease around the globe.
The disease and how it affects people
Anaemia will develop when there are insufficient tissues which are carried by red blood cells in the body. People of all ages are vulnerable to Anaemia. With the pregnant women and young children being the most vulnerable ones. With anaemia strikes, fatigue, weakness, dizziness and drowsiness will come together. If immediate treatment is not deployed, anaemia can deteriorate and the patient will become even more weak. Underweight babies, infants and women of childbearing age are those that are of higher risk.
The causes
The most common factor in regards to nutrition that contributes to amaemia is iron deficiency. Iron deficiency may be very much worsen by poor nutritional status.
Excessive blood loss can also result in amaemia and the most important factor in water-related causes of anaemia are malnutrition and water-borne/related infections.
Arsenicosis
When one drinks water that is excessively rich in arsenic over a long period of time will cause arsenic poisoning or arsenicosis. The best and effective preventive way is to have a clean supply of drinking water low in arsenic concentration.The disease and how it affects people
Arsenicosis is being caused by arsenic poisoning, which usually last over a long time. Drinking excessively rich arsenic water will develop various health effects such as skin problems, skin cancer, cancers of the bladder, kidney and lung, as well as the diseases of the blood vessels of the legs and feet, most possibly too, diabetes, high blood pressure and reproductive disorders.
The causes
Arsenicosis is caused by the arsenic, which is a toxic element that has zero health effects that benefit humans. Natural arsenic salts are present in all waters but only in a very small amount. Arsenicosis is known to be usually caused by exposure to arsenic in drinking water.
Campylobacteriosis
Campylobacteriosis is a severe form of diarrhoea. This disease can be found globally. The disease and how it affects people
Symptoms of campylobacteriosis include diarrhoea, abdominal pain, malaise, fever, nausea and vomiting. This disease usually can last for 2 to 5 days unless it is being prolonged by relapses. Arthritis may occur in some individuals. Campylobacteriosis seldom cause deaths.
The causes
Campylobacteriosis is usually passed to humans via animals or animal products where the bacterium which causes this is being very widely spreaded and found in most warm-blooded animals. The animals may not have any campylobateriosis symptoms and that people are only exposed to the bacteria only after the consumption of contaminated food such as undercooked meats, raw milk or contaminated water.
Cholera
Cholera can occur worldwide as long as water supplies, sanitation, food safety and hygiene practices are not adequate. The disease and how it affects people
Cholera, being an acute infection in the intestines, which usually starts with diarrhoea, nausea and vomiting. Malnourished people will usually experience symptoms of higher severity. Untreated cholera can cause dehydration and death.
The causes
Raw or undercooked food may be a source of disease infection in areas where cholera is common and sanitation is poor. Food that have been washed with contaminated water scan also cause the infection if V. cholerae is present.
Dengue and Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever
Dengue is found in tropical and subtropical regions around the world, where Aedes mosquitos are common. It is estimated to have around 50-100 million cases of dengue fever each year.The disease and how it affects people
Dengue is a disease that is mosquito-borne infection and in recent years has developed to the scope of a major disease that affects people all around the world. Dengue fever is a very severe, flu-like disease that affects people of all ages but rarely causes death.
The causes
There are four different, but are all closely associated viruses which all causes dengue. Different types of virus will develop into a different level and type of dengue. Dengue viruses are passed on to human bodies via bites of infected but only female Aedes mosquitos. Mosquitos are infected with the virus if it feeds on the blood of the infected people and then transmit the virus to the other people whom they bite for blood. The disease in mosquitoes can be passed on to the next generation.
Malaria
Malaria is passed on by mosquitoes which breed well in fresh and brackish water. The disease and how it affects people
Some symptoms of this disease include ¡°fever, chills, headache, muscle aches, tiredness, nausea and vomiting, diarrhoea, anaemia, and jaundice (yellow colouring of the skin and eyes)¡±. In certain serious cases, Convulsions, coma, severe anaemia or even kidney failure can occur. However, the severity is still depends on the type of malaria which the person is affected with. In areas with very high malaria transmission, people are able to implement protective immunity against malaria after few repeated infections. Malaria can cause death.
The causes
Malaria is the result of four species of Plasmodium parasites namely (P. falciparum, P. vivax, P. ovale, P. malariae). People are infected with malaria after he or she is bitten by a malaria-infected, in this case, similar to that of the dengue case. The difference is that this is caused by Anopheles mosquito. Some bite at dusk, others in the night. When a mosquito bites an infected person, it ingests malaria parasites with the blood.
Onchocerciasis/river blindness
The above disease is a scrounging disease which is spreaded by an insect that are water-borne. This disease is the second leading infectious cause of blindness in the world and preventing insects from breeding in rivers is one of the precaution people can take.The disease and how it affects people
Onchocerciasis is a reault of the Onchocerca volvulus, a thin worm that is parasitic and can lives up to 14 years in a human body. The disease is transmitted by a blackfly¡¯s bite. Blackflies lay eggs in rapid rivers, and the eggs will mature into adult blackflies within 8 to 12 days. When it bites a person, who is infected with onchocerciasis, for blood, it may ingest worm larvae, and would be transmitted to the following human bitten by the same blackfly. Transmitted worm larvae will then grow into adult worms and then settle into certain fibrous nodules of human, which usually are near joints or skin surfaces.
Effects of this disease
Adult female worm can be up to 0.5 meters long, and has the capability to produces millions of microscopic young worms which are known as microfilariae. Microfilariae travels through the skin and til its death, will cause very intense case of itching and depigmentation of the human skin which eventually results in visual impairment or even blindness when it reaches the human eye.
Trachoma
Trachoma occurs worldwide and most often found in poor urban communities such as developing countries. The disease and how it affects people
Trachoma is a disease that may result in blindness after repeated infections. It is the world's leading cause of blindness and occurs at places where there is limited access to water and usually over crowded. Trachoma spreads easily among humans. Infection usually occurs in childhood but blindness comes only in adulthood. The disease develops over a few years as repeated infections will cause scarring on the inside of the eyelid, and the eyelashes eventually turn in. This causes frequent rubbing on the cornea at the front of the eye which then results in severe loss of sight and blindness.
The causes
Trachoma is caused by bacteria called Chlamydia trachomatis. Through the discharge of Chlamydia trachomatis from an infected child's eyes, trachoma is passed via hands to another victim.
Hepatitis
Hepatitis is a term for inflammation in the liver, and it has a few infectious and non-infectious causes. Hepatitis A and E can be transmitted via food and water; which explains why hygiene is a very important factor which people must take good care of. The disease and how it affects people
Hepatitis A and E are closely linked to inadequate water supplies, improper sanitation as well as bad hygiene. First few symptoms of this disease include fever, body weakness, loss of appetite, nausea and abdominal discomfort, followed by jaundice which will occur in a few days after a person is infected with this disease. Mild disease last only 1-2 weeks while a severe one will last for a few months with most infections occurring during early child years. Most cases may not significantly show signs of the disease. Almost all who are infected can recover fully with no further effects.
The causes
Even though Hepatitis A and E are not related to each other, both are passed on by the faecal-oral route, either through contaminated water or from one to another. Uncooked or contaminated can also transmit Hepatitis A.
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DO YOU KNOW?
Drinking water that was part of the dinosaur era is actually possible as the amount of water is constant and is recycled throughout time.
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