Improved sanitation can rid India of 15 diseases
NEW DELHI: All sorts of diseasecausing bugs — virus, bacteria, protozoa and parasitic worms — found in the faeces of infected people find their way into our bodies through contaminated soil and water and food handled by infected people.
Add to that mosquitoes breeding in stagnant water, algae and fungi in neglected surroundings, lack of safe running water and missing toilets and sewerage — we are juggling several triggers of outbreaks waiting to happen.
Diarrhoeal diseases kill 100,000 children under 11 months old in India each year, making this water and food-borne infection the second largest killer of children after pneumonia.
“Safe drinking-water supply including continuous disinfection (chlorination), proper handling of production animals, working sewage-disposal systems and protection of the water supply from contamination is a start,” says Dr Srinath Reddy, president, Public Health Foundation of India.
The “Swachh Bharat” campaign promises to sweep out infec- tion and disease, but till that happens, avoiding infection in every way you can is the best you can do. Washing your hands with soap and water before handling food, washing vegetables and fruits in clean water before eating or cooking and thoroughly cooking potentially contaminated foods are some ways to ensure your food is free of infection-causing pathogens. Waste disposal management is essential to eliminate mosquitobreeding breeding sites to lower malaria, dengue and Japanese encephalitis.