Intestinal infections
From The Cure For The Needy
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Intestinal Infections
Background
From Human Illnesses
Viruses, bacteria, parasites, or other pathogens (PAH-tho-jens, microscopic organisms that cause disease) can cause infections in the stomach and small and large intestines, which often lead to gastroenteritis.
When people get sick because they eat food or drink water that has been contaminated with disease-causing organisms or toxins (poisons that harm the body), it is called food poisoning or foodborne illness. Food poisoning usually affects the stomach and/or the intestines. Occasionally, however, the organism or toxin behind the illness can travel through the bloodstream and cause various symptoms in other parts of the body, such as the liver*. Some types of food poisoning can harm the fetus* carried by a pregnant woman.
Intestinal infections can be spread in many ways. Some people become infected by eating contaminated shellfish, raw or undercooked meat, or unpasteurized* dairy products, or from drinking or swimming in contaminated water. Others get sick after touching a surface (such as a kitchen counter) or bowel movement (when changing a diaper or doing laundry, for example) contaminated with an infectious organism. If they forget to wash their hands, they can carry the organism to their mouths on their hands or on food that they eat. Outbreaks of intestinal infections occur when many people eat or drink the same contaminated food or water.
Intestinal infections are very common, particularly in developing parts of the world. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that about 2 million children worldwide die each year from diseases that cause diarrhea. Children, the elderly, and people who have weak immune systems are most likely to contract intestinal infections.
From wikipedia:Cryptosporidiosis
Cryptosporidiosis, also known as crypto,[1] is a parasitic disease caused by Cryptosporidium, a protozoan parasite in the phylum Apicomplexa. It affects the intestines of mammals and is typically an acute short-term infection. It is spread through the fecal-oral route, often through contaminated water;[1] the main symptom is self-limiting diarrhea in people with intact immune systems. In immunocompromised individuals, such as AIDS patients, the symptoms are particularly severe and often fatal. Cryptosporidium is the organism most commonly isolated in HIV positive patients presenting with diarrhea. Treatment is symptomatic, with fluid rehydration, electrolyte correction and management of any pain. Despite not being identified until 1976, it is one of the most common waterborne diseases and is found worldwide. The parasite is transmitted by environmentally hardy cysts (oocysts) that, once ingested, exist in the small intestine and result in an infection of intestinal epithelial tissue.
From wikipedia:Amoebiasis
A gastrointestinal infection that may or may not be symptomatic and can remain latent in an infected person for several years, amoebiasis is estimated to cause 70,000 deaths per year world wide.[7] Symptoms can range from mild diarrhea to dysentery with blood and mucus in the stool. E. histolytica is usually a commensal organism.[8] Severe amoebiasis infections (known as invasive or fulminant amoebiasis) occur in two major forms. Invasion of the intestinal lining causes amoebic dysentery or amoebic colitis. If the parasite reaches the bloodstream it can spread through the body, most frequently ending up in the liver where it causes amoebic liver abscesses. Liver abscesses can occur without previous development of amoebic dysentery. When no symptoms are present, the infected individual is still a carrier, able to spread the parasite to others through poor hygienic practices. While symptoms at onset can be similar to bacillary dysentery, amoebiasis is not bacteriological in origin and treatments differ, although both infections can be prevented by good sanitary practices.