Health Matters (01); Infectious Diseases

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INTRODUCTION

Warm greetings to fellow healthy Steemians in the community.
We have come once again to discuss important health issues relating to infectious diseases. The sicknesses and diseases humans suffer, are from the direct or indirect contact from the carriers of the virus, bacteria, parasite, or fungi through which the sicknesses and diseases are transmitted. These causative agents of sickness and diseases have dealt so many harm to human health as they have caused billions of deaths and inflicting sicknesses.

I now proceed to deal with the issues raised by the host @sahmie which are:

• What do you know as infectious diseases?

• How do infectious diseases spread, and what measures can individuals take to prevent transmission?

• What are the differences between bacterial and viral infections, and how does this impact treatment strategies?

• How do socioeconomic factors influence the prevalence and impact of infectious diseases in different communities?

What are infectious diseases?

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Infectious diseases are disorderliness in health which are either caused by a bacteria, fungi, parasite, or virus that spread directly or indirectly from human to human. For more clarity, infectious diseases are transmittable or contagious.

As highlighted above, there are microscopic organisms that causes infection and they include:

• The bacteria
• The viruses
• The fungi
• The protozoans
  These organisms can not just be seen with the ordinary eyes.

Ways Infectious Diseases Spread

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Infectious diseases spread in several ways. Such ways include:

• Fluid or blood transfusion
• Human excretions like feaces or urine
• It also spread through air
• Direct contact with an infected person through the mouth, genitals, nose.

Now individuals can prevent the transmission of infectious diseases in the following ways:

• Practicing good hygiene
• Practicing a good and quality food hygiene
• Getting vaccinated to avoid being infected
• Having one sexual partner and is tested free from any infection.

The difference between viral and bacterial infections

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Some differences between viral and bacterial infections are:

• Viral infection can't be remedied with antibiotics; while bacteria infection could be treated with antibiotics.

• Having a viral infection, the cells are destroyed as the virus increases; while with bacteria,there are some healthy bacteria Living in our body.

• Viral infection are through viruses on genes material like the DNA; while bacterial infections originates from bacteria that are known to be a single cell organisms.

• Some viral infections could be treated with antiviral medicines,; while bacteria infections makes one sick.

How socioeconomic factors influence the prevalence and impact of infectious diseases in different communities

Socioeconomic factors influence the prevalence and impact of infectious diseases in the following ways:

• Environmental Pollution:
  There is an exponential increase at the rate which waste are generated and are not well managed. This has caused the growth of infectious diseases. It is even worse in developing countries.

• In adequate health health facilities:
  Lack of adequate health facilities and manpower has contributed to the prevalence of infectious diseases. The health facilities are overstretched with fewer number of health workers. This has made patients to resort self medication thereby contributing to the prevalence of infectious diseases.

• Poverty: So much poverty has made individuals not to get the adequate medical attention that they need as they can not afford their needed medical care.

Conclusion

The Government at all levels should set up enabling laws to handle environmental Pollution. They should also make the provision of health Care facilities and manpower a priority. In the same view, the should deploy economic machineries by lowering the cost of living standard including cost of medical care.

On the part of Communities and individuals, they should imbibe the culture of maintaining a clean and healthy environment as well as practicing good and quality food hygiene.

I believe that when all these are put in place, the prevalence of infectious diseases will greatly reduce.

I invite the following persons to participate:
@nsijoro
@alexanderpeace
@ihorgic

Good health and prosperity to everyone!