Hyderabad: Rising heat sparks fear of waterborne diseases, heat strokes

Sometimes, out of desperation to escape heat, people also tend to consume water from unsafe sources, which triggers cholera, typhoid and infections like rotavirus, salmonella, shigella and diarrhoea

Hyderabad: It’s only February and the mercury in Hyderabad has already started to rise, which is a major cause of concern for public health officials and also for general public not only in twin cities but also in the adjoining districts of Medchal-Malkajgiri and Rangareddy districts.

As temperatures rise, cases of water-borne ailments are expected to rise, which puts a lot of pressure on public and private healthcare facilities. The onset of summer signals extreme pressure on water resources, which leads to water-borne ailments like cholera, dysentery, diarrhoea, etc., as people throw caution to the wind and consume foods that are prepared from untreated water sources.

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To beat the heat, people also consume refreshments like soda, juice, cut fruits that are stored in unsafe industrial ice for cooling and drink sugarcane juice with iced water. Sometimes, out of desperation to escape heat, people also tend to consume water from unsafe sources, which triggers cholera, typhoid and infections like rotavirus, salmonella, shigella and diarrhoea.

In addition to food and water-borne ailments, a third category of diseases that one must be wary of during summers are Heat Related Illnesses (HRI), which encompass a broad spectrum of symptoms including heat syncope, muscle cramps, heat exhaustion and life-threatening emergencies like heat strokes.

“Water-borne ailments are usually associated to lack of access to potable drinking water, the heat strokes are due to exposure to high temperatures of over 40-degree Celsius. A healthy person can withstand heat stroke and other complications. However, this is not the case in persons with co-morbid conditions like chronic kidney and heart ailments and diabetes,” Superintendent, Fever Hospital, Dr. K Shankar said.

Persons with such pre-existing medical conditions should ensure that they are not exposed to extreme heat during peak summer. Doctors said that core body temperatures of senior citizens, diabetics, kidney and heart patients rises considerably when exposed to hot sun for a long time.