The Ebola Effects

Ebola as a disease is not a new phenomenon. It was first seen or ‘discovered’ back in 1976 when there was a simultaneous outbreak in the African countries of Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo. One of the villages where the first outbreak occurred was in the village of Yambuku, which is situated close to the river Ebola, thus showing how the disease got its name.

The current strain of the disease broke out back in March of this year in Guékédou which is in Guinea in West Africa. This current strain has developed into an epidemic which has resulted in worldwide attention. Due to international intervention in the form of health workers, we have seen the disease transcend borders and as a result bringing diagnosis to countries outside of Africa.

This infographic looks at the Ebola effect on the countries that it has permeated. It looks at the costs predicted or forecasted on the West African countries worst hit. Controlling the disease is vital and the infographic looks at methods used in attempting to achieve this. 

10 Habits That Can Weaken Your Immune System

Every day we come in contact with disease-causing germs, the only thing keeping us from succumbing to them and getting sick is our immune system. Most people’s immune systems are quite effective most of the time, but unhealthy practices can decrease the body’s ability to fight off illness.

Here are a few bad habits that can sabotage your immune system and reduce your body to fight germs and diseases:

Smoking – Cigarettes damages your first line of defense, the linings of your mouth and your nose, which are actually part of your immune system, making you more susceptible to cold and flu. Smoking can also cause your immune system to attack your lung tissues, worsening chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder, or COPD, an incurable respiratory condition. This is another reason why you should consider giving up cigarette.

Lack of sleep – Getting adequate sleep helps the body to be rested and prepared to fight infections, and lack of sleep increases your chances of developing many conditions such as depression, diabetes, and obesity. You can fight off infection while asleep! You should average about 7 to 9 hours of sleep every night, and you can then look forward to its benefits on your health.

Too much alcohol – Drinking too much alcohol can wear away the linings of your mouth and oesophagus, making it easier for viruses and bacteria to enter your body and make you sick. Women who drink alcohol should limit their intake to one drink per day, while men should have no more than two per day.

Too much stress – Stress, whether from work, personal commitments, or other sources, can weaken the body’s immune response and make you more likely to come down with cold, flu, and other viral infections. To de-stress and stay healthy, try exercising for 30 minutes a day or practicing deep breathing — both can diminish the effects of stress on your body and boost your immune system.

Bad eating habits – Eating foods with too much sugar or not enough fruits and vegetables can impair your immune function. It can also cause you to be overweight, a condition that makes you more susceptible to disease. For optimal immune system, your diet should include plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and low-fat milk.

Risky sexual behaviours – Unsafe sexual behaviours can put you at greater risk for human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV, a condition that weakens the immune system and hampers the body’s ability to fight infections. Having multiple sexual partners and vaginal, oral, or anal sex without using condoms increases your risk of becoming HIV-positive.

Lack of exercise – Regular exercise can bolster your immune system by enhancing its ability to create antibodies and T-cells, which are white blood cells that help the body fight disease. As little as 20 minutes of walking five days a week can help your immune system perform at its best.

Not getting vaccines - If you want to avoid illnesses like the flu, shingles, and other preventable diseases, conquer your fear of needles and go get a shot. One of the easiest ways to avoid certain illnesses is by getting vaccinated against them.

Keeping to yourself – People who keep to themselves are more likely to suffer from depression, and people with depression are more likely to have imbalances in certain immune-system substances. These imbalances can increase the risk of developing illnesses like heart disease and insulin resistance. So socialize and keep yourself healthy, and if you think you are at risk of depression, talk to your doctor.

Kick these bad habits and help your immune system stay sharp and effective to keep you healthy.

'Brain-eating amoeba' kills 10 in Pakistan

• People can't be infected with the amoeba by swallowing contaminated water.
• Ongoing heat and droughts could put more people at risk.
• The organism travels from the nose to the brain.

The brain-eating amoeba that killed three people this summer is an organism that thrives in warm fresh water and can be found in lakes, rivers, hot springs and soil, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

All three deaths this year occurred in the South: a 16-year-old girl in Florida, a 9-year-old boy in Virginia and a 20-year-old man in Louisiana. 

A brutal summer and drought make the conditions perfect for the amoeba. The threat of N. fowleri could potentially be elevated for weeks in some areas. According to the CDC, infections occur mainly in July, August and September. 

The microscopic amoeba, Naegleria fowleri, attacks anyone who has the misfortune of inhaling it. It enters first up the nose and then goes to the brain, usually killing its victims within two weeks.

"Once forced up the nose, it can travel to the brain, where it digests brain cells," Jonathan Yoder, an epidemiologist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told Discovery News. "It's a very tragic disease that thankfully is very rare."

Aside from its rarity, the amoeba "is not looking to prey upon human victims," he said. "They usually go after bacteria in water and soil."

As single-celled organisms, amoebas do not even have brains. However, Naegleria species, including this disease-causing one, can transform themselves into three di-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;"> "During the hottest time of the summer, water in ponds, lakes, and rivers become very warm and there can be increases in the amounts of amoeba present," said Florida DOH spokesperson Christie Goss. "We advise everyone to be aware of the danger of swimming in such water, but especially of stirring up the sediment in shallow water or diving and swimming under water which can enable the amoeba to enter the nose and possibly infect the brain."

Both the DOH and the CDC add that it may help to "hold your nose, or use nose plugs when jumping or diving into water."

Much about N. fowleri remains a mystery.  Anne Oplinger, a spokesperson for the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told Discovery News that she wasn't aware of any federally funded studies investigating the disease at present.

Health officials at the CDC and elsewhere, however, are closely monitoring the cases, to detect any possible patterns or if the caseload might rise in future due to climate change or other possible contributing factors. So far, the number of PAM deaths this year falls within the annual national average.

10 Reasons I choose not to have sex outside my marriage

1.  I want to protect my family from HIV. 
2.  I want to be a role model for my children and community. 
3.  I choose not to have extra-marital affairs because I love my spouse. 
4.  HIV is real and having sex outside my marriage puts ma at a greater risk of contracting HIV or Sexually Transmitted Infection. 
5.  Being faithful to my spouse shows that I am emotionally matured and can take control of my life. 
6.  The partner I may be keeping outside my marriage could also have a partner who might be infected with HIV. 
7.  Having sex outside my marriage will destroy my spouse’s trust in me. 
8.  I can provide help to people in need without asking for any favours (sexual or otherwise) in return. 
9.  I am able to focus more on my family. 
10.  Sticking to my spouse saves me and my family money and energy.

This is a message produced by the Enhancing Nigeria’s response to HIV & AIDS (ENR) Programme for National Agency for the Control of AIDS with the support of the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (UKAID).

 

We decided to publish this message here not as a publicity for any agency or an advert but our modest contribution to the fight against HIV/AIDS. There is a reported recent surge in the incidence rate of HIV in the world with the bulk of the victims in the sub-Saharan Africa and majority of the victims have history of multiple sexual partners. This gives credence to the importance of this message and more importantly, the urgency to get it as many people as possible.

 

Everybody has a right to protect him/herself and we will like to implore you to make a decision to do just that, not only for yourself but also your family.

RABIES: A preventable disease worse than HIV

September 28 is World Rabies Day, a global observance that seek to raise awareness about rabies, promote information on prevention and elimination of rabies. It is an excellent time to take steps that can help prevent and control rabies, such as vaccinating pets including dogs and cats and providing education on how to avoid the animals that typically transmit rabies: dogs, cats,racoons, bats, skunks and foxes.

Rabies is a viral disease of mammals most often transmitted to humans through close contact with infected saliva via bites and scratches. In rare cases, an animal can spread the virus when its saliva comes in contact with a person’s mucous membranes (moist skin surfaces, like the mouth, eyes, inner eyelids or vagina) or broken skin such as a cut, scratch, bruise, or open wounds.

 

The rabies virus infects the central nervous system, ultimately causing disease in the brain and death.

The early symptoms of rabies include fever, loss of appetite, nausea, fatigue, headache, pain or an unusual or unexplained tingling, pricking or burning sensation (parastesia) and general body weakness.

 

As the virus spreads through the central nervous system, more specific symptoms appear and may include insomnia, anxiety, confusion, slight or partial paralysis, excitation, hallucination, agitation, hype- salivation (increase production of saliva), difficulty swallowing, and hydrophobia (fear of water). Death from cardio-respiratory arrest usually occurs within days of the onset of these symptoms.

 

Facts on Rabies:

1.      Rabies occurs in more than 150 countries and territories.

 

2.      Rabies is present in all continents with the exception of Antarctica.

 

3.      More than 55,000 people, mostly in Africa and Asia, die of Rabies every year – a rate of one person every ten minutes.

 

4.      Rabies is 100% preventable.

 

5.      Wound cleansing and immunization within a few hours after exposure to rabies can prevent the onset of symptoms and death.

 

6.      Once the symptoms of the disease develop, rabies is nearly always fatal.

 

7.      No tests are available to diagnose rabies infection in the human before the onset of clinical disease, and unless the rabies-specific signs of hydrophobia or aerophobia are present, the clinical diagnosis may be difficult.

 

8.      Human-to human transmission by bite is theoretically possible but has never been confirmed.

 

9.      Rabies may be contacted via transplantation of infected organ but not through blood transmission.

 

10.  Ingestion of raw meat or other tissues from infected animals is not a source of human infection.

 

11.  Uncontrolled rabies in dogs is the most important global source of rabies in human.

 

12.  Treatment after exposure (Post Exposure Prophylaxis – PEP) is highly successful in preventing the disease if administered promptly, in general within 10 days of infection. PEP is 100% effective against rabies.

 

13.  Children are often at greatest risk of rabies. They are more likely to be severely exposed through multiple bites in high risk sites of the body.

 

Recommended first aid procedure

 

If you have been bitten by a dog or any other animal:

 

1.      Immediate and thorough flushing of the wound for a minimum of 15 minutes with soap and water, detergent, alcohol (ethanol), iodine tincture or povidone iodine and cover the bite with a clean bandage.

 

2.      Immediately call your doctor or go to a nearby emergency department.

 

3.   Vaccinating dogs, cats, rabies, and ferrets against rabies.

 

2.      Keeping pets under supervision (maintain control of your pets to reduce their exposure to wildlife).

 

3.      Not handling wild animals or strays (spay or neuter to decrease the numbers of stray animals).

 

4.      Contacting an animal control officer upon observing a wild animal or a stray, especially if the animal is acting strangely (Report any stray or ill animal to animal control).

 

5.      Washing the wound with soap and water for 10 to 15 minutes, I bitten by an animal, and contacting a healthcare provider to determine if post-exposure prophylaxis is required.

 

From this day, begin to take the steps to keep yourself and your family free from rabies.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT LASSA FEVER

Lassa fever is a deadly disease caused by a virus which occurs suddenly in people who are infected through contact with the urine, faeces and saliva of infected rats. SYMPTOMS OF LASSA FEVER INCLUDE:

• Fever which ranges from 6-21 days.

As the disease progresses into a severe form, the patient presents with:

• Facial swelling
• Fluid in the CHEST
• Bleeding from mouth, nose, vagina and the gut
• Low blood pressure
• Shock, disorientation, coma and
• Kidney and liver failure.

PREVENT LASSA FEVER

• Store grains and other dried food items in containers with covers
• Proper disposal of refuse far from houses
• Maintain clean houses
• Keep pets like cats
• Block all holes through which rats can enter the the house Take any person with the above symptoms to the nearest health facility.

Truvada: 5 Things to Know About the First Drug to Prevent HIV

Doctors now have another weapon against HIV/AIDS in their arsenal, and it’s a potent one. For the first time, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a drug treatment that will prevent infection in healthy people.

The drug, called Truvada, which is already approved for the treatment of HIV in infected patients, works by lowering the amount of virus circulating in people’s blood. But clinical trials show that it can also protect uninfected high-risk people from acquiring the virus, if they take the drug daily before and after exposure.
The approval is controversial. Some public health experts argue that allowing the drug to be used for prevention will foster a false sense of security among users, leading people to believe mistakenly that they are immune to the virus and reduce their use of condoms. However, the FDA determined that the benefits of expanding the pool of people who may use Truvada to protect against HIV made it worth approving. Here’s what you need to know.

Who can take Truvada?
The drug, made by Gilead Sciences Inc., is approved for healthy, uninfected people who are at high risk of contracting HIV through sex. These include sex workers and people with partners who are HIV-positive or engage in high-risk behaviors, such as using IV drugs.

How effective is the drug in preventing HIV?
In one study, healthy gay and bisexual men who took Truvada daily and were counseled about safe sex practices lowered their risk of becoming infected by up to 42%. In another study involving heterosexual couples in which one partner was HIV-positive, the uninfected partner had a 75% lower risk of contracting HIV if they took Truvada.

Does Truvada cure AIDS?
No. The drug can treat people who are infected with HIV by lowering the amount of virus in their bodies and slowing down the progression of the disease. In healthy, uninfected people, the drug can thwart HIV’s ability to take hold in healthy cells and start an infection, by blocking the activity of an enzyme that the virus needs to replicate.

Why is the approval controversial?
Some experts believe that healthy people may not take the drug correctly — it needs to be taken daily to be effective — which would encourage HIV to become resistant to the medication. Public health officials also worry that people may engage in more risky behaviors when they are on the drug, believing they are protected completely against HIV, which they are not. However, patients who receive Truvada prophylactically will be expected to participate in a comprehensive HIV protection plan involving regular HIV testing, condom use and prevention counseling and support. Clinical trials have not shown that users are more likely to engage in risky sexual behavior.

Researchers also can’t explain why in one study involving female sex workers, those who took Truvada to prevent HIV were not protected against infection. The authors think that the participants did not take the drug in the right doses, but it’s also possible that something about the vaginal environment makes the drug less effective.

Why is the approval important?
Approving a drug to prevent HIV marks a big step toward controlling the spread of HIV and AIDS, not just in the U.S. but worldwide as well. Once Truvada is used as a preventive measure domestically, U.S.-backed AIDS programs in the developing world may also begin to roll out the pill for healthy people who are at high risk of contracting HIV. Public health experts are eager to build up all effective prevention strategies, noting that the only way to stop the epidemic is by preventing new infections as well as treating existing ones.

Source: Time Health