Chapter 13 Why Do We Fall ill

The two conditions essential for good health are :

(i) Person should be physically fit and fine.

(ii) He should have a good and clean environment.

The two conditions essential for being free of diseases are :

(i) Maintaining personal and domestic hygiene.

(ii) Taking a good food (balanced diet)  that contains carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, fibres, and proper quantity of water.

No. The answers are not the same all the time. This is because the meaning of health varies from person to person. For example, good health for a dancer may be being able to stretch his body into difficult but graceful positions. Good health is the ability of an individual to realise his or her full potential. Individuals can have poor health without having any identifiable disease. Also, health is related to society and community, whereas having a disease is about an individual sick person. Hence, the conditions for good health and for being disease free can be the same or even different.

The three reasons why a person think that he or she is sick and ought to see a doctor are :

a. Cough
b. Fever
c. Headache

Even seeing one of the symptoms, I would go to the doctor. However, if only one of these symptoms is present, we usually do not visit a doctor. This is because such symptoms do not have much effect on our general health and ability to work. However, if a person is experiencing these symptoms for quite some time, then he needs to visit a doctor for proper treatment.

Jaundice can cause long-term effects on our health. It is a chronic disease and it takes a long time to be cured. It does not spread rapidly, but it develops slowly over a period of time.

During sickness the body becomes weak and the digestive system does not work properly. Immunity of the body decreases during disease of infection. So we are normally advised to consume bland and nourishing food when we are sick so that we can get the nutrients and energy quickly to fight off the foreign disease-causing agents.

Infectious diseases can be spread in several ways such as air, water, sexual contact, blood, and vectors.

(i) Through Air: Sneezing or coughing little droplets thrown in the air carry microbes which can cause the spread. For example, tuberculosis, pneumonia, etc. spread through air.

(ii) Sometimes causal micro-organisms get mixed with drinking water and spread water borne diseases. Cholera for example is water borne disease.

(iii) Sexual Contact: Diseases such as syphilis or AIDS are transmitted by sexual contact.

(iv) Certain diseases such as AIDS can spread via blood to blood contact during blood transfusion or pregnancy.

(v) Through vectors : These are intermediaries which carry the infectious agents from the patient to the host. For example mosquitoes spread malaria.

Precautions to reduce incidence of infectious diseases are:

(i) Drinking clean and hygienic water.

(ii) Keeping the toilet neat and clean.

(iii) Stay away from the diseased person.

(iv) Using handkerchief to cover the mouth while sneezing or coughing.

(v) Initiations of the school immunization program for children.

(vi) Preventing over crowded classes.

Immunization is the process whereby a person is made immune or resistant to an infectious disease, typically by the administration of a vaccine. Vaccines stimulate the body’s own immune system to protect the person against subsequent infection or disease.

The immunization programme is available at the nearest health centre in our locality.

(i) For infants : DPT, polio, measles and MMR.

(ii) For children : Typhoid, TT, DT, smallpox and TAB.

(iii) For pregnant women : TT and hepatitis-B.

The diseases like jaundice and typhoid are major health problems in our locality.

I fell ill twice in the last one year. The disease I first suffered from was typhoid and secondary the dengue fever.

a. The changes I brought in my habits after suffering from these diseases to protect myself in near future are; I will always drink clean, pure water and also live in a clean environment.

b. Pure drinking water should always be available. The intake of impure water is the main cause of many infectious diseases.

The following precautions must be taken by a doctor/ nurse/ health-worker:

(i) Use of gloves and wearing a mask when in contact with a diseased person.

(ii) Hospital is always kept clean.

(iii) Drinking pure water.

(iv) Eating healthy and nutritious food and avoiding sharing food with patients.

(v) Use of sanitizers and disinfectants whenever required.

Three most common diseases are:

a. Tuberculosis
b. Typhoid
c. Jaundice
d. Viral fever
e. Dysentery

Preventive measures are :

i. Maintaining the neighbourhood clean.
ii. Timely spray of chemicals in the surroundings to kill mosquitoes.
iii. Arrangements of social programmes to educate people about prevention of diseases.

(a) The baby is sick if he / she is crying continuously and also can be noticed by behaviour changes.

(b) The sickness is determined by symptoms and noticing the body temperature of the baby, vomiting, loose motion, paleness in the body, etc.

(c) A person is more likely to fall sick when she is on a four day fast after recovering from malaria and is taking care of someone who is suffering from chicken pox. This is because after malaria her immune system has become weak so for recovery she should take a healthy diet and in this situation, fasting is not acceptable. If she takes care of someone suffering from chickenpox then there is a high probability that she would also gain chickenpox.

(c) When your friend is suffering from measles then you are most likely to fall sick. This is because measles is an infectious disease which spreads through nasal or throat discharge i.e., through air. Thus, if your friend is suffering from measles, stay away from him otherwise you might easily get infected with the disease.