Plagues and diseases have been factors in human life for as long as written history goes back. In the era of the hunter-gatherers, plagues were not as big of an issue as one might assume. They moved in small groups and if they were infected, they rarely infected anyone else or spread the infection to other groups. As history continued, particularly with the domestication of animals, is when plagues and infectious diseases became a bigger problem. The large numbers of humans and animals in close proximity proved to be a perfect breeding ground for vectors for plagues. The animals and humans shared a water supply which triggered the spread and the use of single-crop mono cultures lead to nutrient deficiency in humans making them more vulnerable to the diseases.
In our world today, the living conditions and water situation is much better for most areas of the world but some areas of the world are still at a high risk for disease. In countries like Yemen, only 1 in 25 children dont live past the age of 5, for reasons varying from war to disease; sometimes these two factors are not completely independent. Politics and war have contributed greatly to the spread of diseases, particularly countries in the Middle East. Hospitals and health centers and water treatment centers are becoming the targets of airstrikes and attacks which only increases the likelihood of disease spreading throughout the poverty-struck countries.
Health and welfare of the human population is also under attack from another beast that is not a virus but the sedentary lifestyle that more and more human beings choose to live every day. Obesity is increasing at an alarming rate which causes more health complications than I have room to write. The use of cigarettes and climate change also have an effect on rising epidemics in the world today. The ocean is getting more and more acidic, effecting fish and the seafood industry, making it unsafe for human consumption. Climate change is also not helping with the depleting resource of natural freshwater, which is becoming more and more of a problem to human beings as the population increases daily. All of these issues that come with every day human life are only getting worse and the health and future of the human species will not change without us taking action first.
Help Received:
Globalization, Climate Change, and Human Health – Anthony J McMichael
Politics and economics and health
Disease and famine as weapons of war in Yemen
Price of being sedentary ppt