Why Do We Fall Ill

Introduction of health • Health State of perfect functioning of body and mind, unhindered by diseases. • Disease. Malfunctioning of the organism or a part of it.( Due to infection, inherent weakness or environmental stress that upsets the normal physiological functioning of the organism.

Diet & Nutrition

Health Lifestyle and Habits

Surroundings

• Rely heavily on convenience or manufactured foods.(Do not support good health). • Eat not enough vegetables and fruits. • Consume an extremely high amount of fat, animal products, and refined carbohydrates such as flour and sugar.

THE HUMAN BODY IS MEANT TO BE ACTIVE MOST OF THE TIME. • Average people watch about 6 hours of television per day. • Physical movement and exercise are necessary for the lymphatic system to operate properly.

• Surroundings play an important role in our health & life. • Stagnant water and garbage pits in our surroundings lead to spread of dangerous diseases like malaria ,chickun guinea etc.

Illness : Reasons • Lack of nutrition. • Polluted water. • Unhygienic surroundings. • Polluted air.

Types OF Diseases  Communicable diseases (Infectious)   Non-communicable diseases (Non-infectious)  

Communicable Diseases

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Caused by the entry and development of living organisms such as virus, bacteria, protozoan, worms or fungi into the body.

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The organism causing the disease may be transmitted from one person to another by means of air, water, food, physical contact or insects

EXAMPLES : communicable diseases ( symptoms, preventions and control)

Malaria  This insect-borne disease is caused by a parasitic protozoan, plasmodium  Transmitted from person to person by the bite of an insect vector, the female anopheles mosquito. Malaria is one of the most deadly diseases.  Quinine which is an extract from

Symptoms • High fever, headache, body ache, nausea and violent shivering (rigours). • Each malarial attack lasts for 6-10 hours and consists of the cold stage (shivering), hot stage (fever) and sweating stage (temperature goes down to normal). • The fever is repeated on the third or fourth day. This leads to general weakness in the patient.

Prevention • Use wire mesh on doors and windows to prevent entry of mosquitoes into the house   • Use mosquito repellents to prevent mosquito bites • Spray kerosene on stagnant water bodies or introduce fishes that feed on mosquito larva • Do not allow rain water to collect and stagnate in the garden

Influenza (flu) • This is an air borne disease caused by a virus called myxovirus influenzae. • Being viral there is no known control for influenza. Fortunately it is self limiting. Relief can be given to the patient by administering a paracetemol (like crocin) but this by itself it is not a cure.

Symptoms Running nose, sneezing, coughing, body ache and fever are some of the symptoms of this disease. Prevention Avoid physical contact with patients suffering with flu.

Jaundice (Hepatitis) Jaundice is the disease that effects the liver which is caused by viral infection. The types of hepatitis are A, B, C, D, E and G.

Symptoms • There is loss of appetite, eyes and skin turn yellow. • Urine is dark yellow and stools are light yellow. • The other symptoms are headache, temperature and pain in the joints.

Prevention   Use potable water that is chlorinated, boiled, filtered and ozonised   Prevent infection through physical contact by washing hands thoroughly after handling any article used by the patient   Hepatitis-B vaccine should be taken to prevent the disease 

Rabies (Hydrophobia) • The patient develops severe headache, high fever, painful contractions of the throat muscles and chest. • Hydrophobia (fear of water) sets in as the virus selectively attacks the brain i.e., the nervous system. • Damage to the central nervous system causes paralysis and

Prevention   Wash the wound with carbolic soap, and clean water without delay soon after the bite.  Apply an antiseptic and consult the doctor for anti rabies vaccine.   Pet dogs or cats should be immunized by getting them vaccinated with anti-rabies vaccine   A rabid dog can be easily identified because it will show excessive salivation and try to seek isolation after biting.

Non-communicable Diseases • Diseases which do not spread from an infectious person to a healthy person. • These are non-infectious diseases e.g., diabetes, arthritis, heart disease and cancer. • Many non-communicable diseases are caused by

Nutritional Disorders • For the healthy growth of the individual, a nourishing, well balanced diet is required. • A diet with nutrients in the right proportion ensures proper growth and development of both body and mind. • If the nutrients are inadequate or not in the right proportion nutritional disorders may occur.

Protein Energy Malnutrition (PEM) Protein energy malnutrition leads to two types of diseases.  • Marasmus  • Kwashiorkor

Marasmus • This is due to protein deficiency and not food calories intake. • In developing countries like India it is common in infants below one year of age. • The common factor may be due to early replacement of mother's milk by other foods of low protein and calorific value. This may happen if the mother has a second pregnancy when the older infant is still too young.

Symptoms   As the stored fats and tissue proteins are used up for the production of energy, the infant develops a shriveled look    Ribs become prominent and limbs become very thin as the fat layer beneath the skin disappears   Retarded physical and mental growth   Severe diarrhoea and other digestive disorders

Prevention / Control  A protein rich diet such as a combination of wheat, gram, peanut, soyabean and jaggery or a diet with animal protein like mutton, chicken and fish, will help the patient to return back to health. 

Kwashiorkor Children between 1-3 years of age must consume 1g protein/kg body weight. If they consume below this quantity they can suffer from this protein deficiency disease.

Symptoms  Growth is stunted, appetite is poor   Stomach gets distended   The eyes are bulging   The patient develops match stick legslegs become thin, long and curved   Skin may become dark and start peeling off and hair may become dull and loose its lusture  

Prevention / Control   By including food rich in protein into the diet, the disease can be cured. Wheat, gram, peanut, soyabean and jaggery are recommended.  

Mineral Deficiency • Minerals are elements which are required by the body in small quantities along with food. • They regulate various metabolic functions in our body. 

Anaemia • Iron deficiency causes Anaemia. • Iron is required by the body to form the protein haemoglobin present in the red blood cells in our body. • The main function of haemoglobin is to transport oxygen from the lungs to the various parts of the body. 

Symptoms Patients suffering from anaemia become pale, lose appetite and feel exhausted.  Prevention

/ Control 

• The diet should be supplemented with liver, egg, molasses, cereal, pulses, leafy vegetables, brinjal, apple, banana, and guava which are rich in iron. • The daily requirement of iron is 25mg. Care should be taken to maintain this level by including vegetables and fruit rich in

Goitre Iodine deficiency leads to this disease. Iodine is essential for the body in very small quantities for the preparation of thyroid hormone thyroxine.

Symptoms

 

• Iodine deficiency causes abnormal enlargement of the thyroid gland which is situated in the neck region. • In childhood, iodine deficiency causes reduced thyroid functioning which results in retarded physical and mental growth. 

Prevention / Control  • The government has made it mandatory to iodise the salt consumed by the public. • Besides sea food, green leafy vegetables etc are rich in iodine and if included generously in the diet will restore the normal functioning of the gland.  

Vitamin Deficiency Vitamins are organic compounds which are taken along with food in small quantities. They are essential for life as they are responsible for certain metabolic activities in the body. Vitamins are of two kinds  Water Soluble  (A and C vitamins)  Fat soluble (B and D vitamins)

Xerophthalmia  This disease is caused by vitamin A deficiency. 

Symptoms •  In a mild form this disease causes night blindness. i.e., difficulty to see in a dim light. • In severe cases it may lead to permanent blindness. • The symptoms are non functioning of lachrymal glands, dryness,

Prevention and Control  Fish, cod liver oil, milk, butter, carrots, tomato, green leafy vegetables, papaya, guava, yellow fruits containing carotene and vegetables such as pumpkin are rich in vitamin A and if included in the diet will help prevent or control the disease.

Rickets This disease is caused by vitamin D deficiency. Vitamin D is synthesized naturally in the presence of sunlight. 

Symptoms • Deficiency of vitamin D leads to loss of Ca++ in the urine. Due to this, no Ca++ gets deposited in the bone. The result is deformities in the bones of the legs and ribs. • This condition is called rickets and occurs in children. The patient has restricted movement of the limbs and the ribs get pigeon chested. • A condition called knock knee may also occur. In adults vitamin D

Prevention / Control  Cod liver oil, fish, milk are rich in vitamin D. If included in the diet, it prevents the disease and / or controls it.     

I take this opportunity to request you all to take small precautions which can prevent the spread of harmful and infectious diseases killing hundreds of innocent people . I also recommend to think of poor and needy people before splurging money on useless things and instead donate the