Water & Health boil for three minutes) Water should then be allowed to cool, stored in a clean sanitized container with a tight cover, and refrigerated.
Because of the small size of the virus, using a pointof-use filter will not remove it from water. You may also disinfect your well; adequate chlorination kills the Hepatitis A virus. Contact your local health department for recommended procedures. Remember to have your well water tested regularly, at least once a year, after disinfection to make sure that the problem does not recur.
Typhoid fever
Typhoid fever is a lifethreatening illness caused by the bacterium Salmonella Typhi. Typhoid fever is common in Zimbabwe: Growing Risk of Waterborne Diseases most parts of the world except in industrialized regions such as the United States, Canada, western Europe, Australia, and Japan. Therefore, if you are traveling to the developing world, you should consider taking precautions. Other areas of risk include East and Southeast Asia, Africa, the Caribbean, and Central and South America. Most cases( up to 75 %) are acquired while traveling internationally. Typhoid fever is still common in the developing world, where it affects about 21.5 million people each year.
What are the signs and symptoms of typhoid fever?
Persons with typhoid fever usually have a sustained fever as high as 103 ° to 104 ° F( 39 ° to 40 ° C). They may also feel weak, or have stomach pains, headache, or loss of appetite. In some cases, patients have a rash of flat, rosecolored spots. The only way to know for sure if an illness is typhoid fever is to have samples of stool or blood tested for the presence of Salmonella Typhi.
How can you avoid typhoid fever? Two basic actions can protect you from typhoid fever: 1. Avoid risky foods and drinks.
2. Get vaccinated against typhoid fever.“ Boil it, cook it, peel it, or forget it”
• If you drink water, buy it bottled or bring it to a rolling boil for 1 minute before you drink it. Bottled carbonated water is safer than uncarbonated water.
and flavored ices that may have been made with contaminated water.
• Eat foods that have been thoroughly cooked and that are still hot and steaming.
• Avoid raw vegetables and fruits that cannot be peeled. Vegetables like lettuce are easily contaminated and are very hard to wash well.
• When you eat raw fruit or vegetables that can be peeled, peel them yourself.( Wash your hands with soap first.) Do not eat the peelings.
• Avoid foods and beverages from street vendors. It is difficult for food to be kept clean on the street, and many travelers get sick from food bought from street vendors.
Trachoma
Trachoma is the world’ s leading cause of preventable blindness of infectious origin. Caused by the bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis, trachoma is easily spread through direct personal contact, shared towels and cloths, and flies that have come in contact with the eyes or nose of an infected person. If left untreated,
Maasai lady suffering from trachoma
repeated trachoma infections can cause severe scarring of the inside of the eyelid and can cause the eyelashes to scratch the cornea( trichiasis). In addition to causing pain, trichiasis permanently damages the cornea and can lead to irreversible blindness. Trachoma, which spreads in areas that lack adequate access to water and sanitation, affects the most marginalized communities in the world.
Globally, almost 8 million people are visually impaired by trachoma; 500 million are at risk of blindness from the disease throughout 57 endemic countries.
The World Health Organization has targeted trachoma for elimination by 2020 through an innovative, multifaceted public health strategy known as S. A. F. E.
• Surgery to correct the advanced, blinding stage of the disease( trichiasis),
• Antibiotics to treat active infection,
• Facial cleanliness and,
• Environmental improvements in the areas of water and sanitation to reduce disease transmission
• Ask for drinks without ice unless the ice is made from bottled or boiled water. Avoid popsicles
Africa Water, Sanitation & Hygiene • November- December 2016 37