Watch Out For These Monsoon-Related Health Issues And Few Precautions
The rain is pouring all around us. Sometimes, it is drizzling while sometimes it is raining hard. Though monsoon beings many joys, it also brings many health hazards. Many gastroenterology clinics note a rise in digestive illness around this time. It is not uncommon for people to have more sick leaves during this period of time. In fact, a sharp increase in patients can be seen in every best hospital during monsoon. Today, we will list out the most common monsoon-related health conditions and will offer some precautions to stay healthy during this season as well.
The best hospitals in Kolkata keeps on having a long queue of patients, all year round, but the following conditions are noted mostly during monsoon.
- Water-Borne Disease – The contamination of water with several pathogens leads to many bowel-related diseases namely, loose motion, diarrhea, cholera.
- Contaminated Food Related diseases – Due to the environment and hygienic factors, several diseases onset during monsoon, namely, stomach infections, vomiting, jaundice and so on.
- Mosquito-Borne Diseases – Since breeding of mosquito uplifts during monsoon season, several diseases like dengue, Chikungunya, Malaria, etc occur in large numbers.
- Common Monsoon Related Diseases – The season change of monsoon brings many other health conditions as well, such as common flu, fever, cold and cough. But thankfully, most of them can be easily treated with mild medication and taking adequate rest.
This season brings many health hazards but timely precaution can help you mitigate the risks of the same and enjoy the season.
1. Intake Plenty Of Vitamin C
Nature offers us many wonders in forms of fruits and vegetables that help us stay healthy. So, increase your intake of vitamin C during monsoon. It can be easily ensured by including citrus fruits in your diet, such as lemon, grapefruit, oranges and fresh green veggies; in fact, sprouts are a good option too.
2. Don’t Let Water Be Stagnant
As already mentioned before, lots of diseases occur due to mosquito during this season and stagnant water is highly favorable for them to breed on. So, make sure all the water storage tanks and reservoirs in your locality is carefully closed with lids and also make sure to get rid of any discarded objects that can store rainwater in it.
3. Avoid Street Food
No matter how mouthwatering you find street food to be, avoid it as much as you can, especially during monsoon. Avoid cut fruits, deep-fried things and items like panipuri in particular. It stays exposed out in the open and as a result, is highly likely to cause some or the other disease.
4. Disinfectant Yourself And Your Surrounding
During the monsoon, the germs spread rapidly. Thus, wash your hand before eating, add few drops of antiseptic or disinfectant in your bathing water daily. And also remember to wash your clothes and bedsheets with it too. You can spray some disinfectant near your home and garden as well.
5. Stay Covered Properly
Since the number of mosquitoes and other pathogens are more during monsoon, it is crucial to limit your exposure to them. Wear full sleeve clothes and pants to protect your skin against them. Also, try to use the mosquito net at night or have net installed at windows.
So, adopt these healthy habits to stay disease-free on this monsoon. However, if you come across any medical issues that persist for more than 5-7 days, get in touch with physicians for treatment and rule out the possibility of any health hazard.
Does The Monsoon Makes People More Prone To Illness Than Usual?
Monsoon – the time of heavy rain in several parts of India. And needless to say, after the scorching summer, it is a respite. Apart from bringing joys and cool breeze, it also brings us another factor- the cold and flu. Monsoon is after all, highly associated with running nose and sick leaves from work and schools. Many are even seen in the hospitals in Kolkata when their self-medication does not work.
Is there a coherent connection between these two, or it is simply a silly reason to avoid getting drenched in rain. Let’s understand in details
There is an old myth that suggests getting wet in the rain lowers the body temperature significantly and attracts all the symptoms of several illnesses. However, one must remember that flu is caused due to the intervention of virus not due to prolonged contact of water on the body. If it had been true, a long shower or bath would result in flu as well.
So, let’s understand what happens. The rainwater itself does not possess any threat to our health, it is water after all, which we use to clean and freshen ourselves. However, the rainwater is circulated from open water bodies which are exposed to natural and chemical pollution and biological pathogens. Also, during the entire process of the water cycle, it attracts dirt and other airborne pathogens as well. Overall, the rain water is nothing resembling the distilled water, as many people believe it.
Once we are exposed to the rain, the pathogens get an easy pass to spread its count and cause symptoms. However, whether or not we directly get drenched in it, the rainwater certainly wets our clothes, building and other possession that we contact directly. This way, the virus and other pathogens enter our system and start hampering the immune system. The most common monsoon illness are the common cold, viral fever, flu, etc.
Moreover, being in wet clothes for a longer period of time can also lower the temperature significantly and weakens the white blood cells, thus it makes the work of immune system a bit more challenging. So, changing into the dry set of clothes after getting wet is highly recommended along with not eating junk food from the street vendors, which are directly exposed to all the ill effect of monsoon.
Despite all these effects, this season can actually be enjoyed with few precautions and trips to hospitals. So stay healthy and happy monsoon to you!