War on Disease - Challenges for Humanity
[link="http://science.nationalgeographic.com/science/health-and-human-body/human-diseases/war-on-disease/#page=1"]
After reading the article, "War on Disease - Challenges for Humanity," what are your thoughts on the status of infectious disease? Is it being given enough attention? Are you surprised that some people are living like this?
9 Replies
I believe overall, we are recognizing the severity of infectious diseases throughout the world. We are still in an infant stage in addressing the issue but it is slowly being brought to attention of the world. As the diseases move into the First World counties, we see greater care and concern for infectious diseases as a whole. It is sad that this is what has to happen in order for action to be taken against it, but it is certainly effective.
I was not very surprised that people in Third World countries are living like this. I have realized in the past that these things were going on with little attention in Western culture. A lot of the problems going on there are very hard to fix, even with proper funding and research.
This article really shows infectious disease effecting all of the world and globally we are just beginning to come into our own in ways to control and prevent the spread of infectious disease especially to under-privileged countries. Basically many people view infectious disease as only a concern if it is effecting a greater populated area which leaves a lot countries fighting this on their own. Infectious disease is a serious issue to many, however, as Americans we do not know exactly how others are effected until we live a day in the shoes of these children in Africa. Through all the research and investments of money and time, Infectious disease can be controlled but I'm not sure if it can really be completely prevented.
It is truly amazing how many infectious diseases are out there right now, able to resurface at any time.We are still in early developmental stages in taking the necessary steps to wiping these diseases out.Poor conditions economically and politically however greatly hinder advancements. It doesn't suprise me at all that there are people living in poor conditions worldwide, most by poverty and some others by sheer laziness, allowing these diseases to easily overwhelm them. When one human person is effected, it should be the job of all humanity to step in and stamp out the problem. One of the more eye catching parts of this article for me was the availability of these diseases as chemical weapons that could easily cause a massive deathtoll before we can even counteract it. It is alarming that we not only must fight disease but those who would wield it against us.
It's honestly hard to believe how many different types of diseases there are in the world today. It is also hard to believe how many people they affect daily. Infectious diseases are everywhere and it seems like they cannot be stopped. The diseases thrive in unclean places and unfortunately a lot of the third world countries cannot keep up with the amount of filth due to over population or even just the fact of insufficient funds. Its seems like diseases will never be able to completely disappear. It honestly is crazy how many people live with these diseases daily and how many more are affected. It's just a shame that there is really nohing that can be done to try and stop the spread of them.
Infectious disease is a worldwide issue which does not receive enough attention, especially by the public. It is not widely known but very important that diseases such as West Nile are present in first world countries. Hopefully, this will increase awareness of infectious disease and cause more people to consider the plight of people in third world countries.
It is also crucial for people to remember that bacteria are living organisms. As such, they evolve and therefore change their genome, which in turn changes the way we need to approach antibodies or cures. Bacteria reproduce and evolve incredibly fast. Yet, people think of bacteria as simply things that make us sick, and do not understand the significance their practically fluid genome. Because of the lack of awareness in first world countries and the lack of understanding in third world countries, it is not surprising that people are living in unhealthy and disease-thick areas. By increasing global awareness and supporting efforts by scientists to develop solutions to disease, we can improve the standard of living in third world countries.
After reading this article I was suprised at how easy it is to spread disease. You would think that with the technology we have today infectious diseases would be contained before they spread. It does not seem like we put in enough effort to stop the disease at it's origins. For example, the article mentioned The West Nile Virus and how no one in the world made a vaccination for it, until it spread from it's origins in Africa to the United States. I was also suprised to learn that some of the small pox virus is unaccounted for, meaning it could be in the hands of evil.
After reading this article I wasn't very surprised to see that a lot of the work done against diseases such as the West Nile virus is totally reactive and not proactive. For researchers in the U.S. the virus had to become a threat in the country itself to give it much attention, despite it having been an issue elsewhere in the world for some time. On that note I believe the best way to deal with infectious diseases is to prepare for and be proactive about them rather than reactive. A good proactive approach might be education and research into the evolution into microbes like the articles suggests.
Infectious disease is one of the worst causes of deaths in the world. And after reading this article I think it shows that we should address it immediately. And even though we do take care of these things to a point. I think we should make a stronger effort to fight them. These diseases are only spreading and getting stronger by the minute. And in todays growing and changing world there will only more of a chance to spread these diseases. I think if everyone works together to fight these diseases there will eventually be cures for them.
Personally, it does not suprise me at all that people are living like this. Today, we are all so worried about things that do not matter. I do not think that this issue has been given enough attention. I think that we are trying to bite offmore than we can chew. We need to start off small and then help spread it to a larger area. For example, we are focused on helping Africa, but realistically we should startwith one specific tribe or community in Africa. It is such a challenging task the way it is, we need to take it one step at a time.Infectious diseases are honestly getting worse. To the point where they are becoming immune to the treatements. Some serious measures need to be taken.
Devon Sherwood
Nov 9, 2011 at 9:37 PM