Podcast
Questions and Answers
What is the universally acknowledged most important method of preventing communicable diseases?
What is the universally acknowledged most important method of preventing communicable diseases?
Which type of disease transmission does respiratory etiquette most help prevent?
Which type of disease transmission does respiratory etiquette most help prevent?
How does vaccination protect the body from communicable diseases?
How does vaccination protect the body from communicable diseases?
Why is it important not to take antibiotics for viral infections?
Why is it important not to take antibiotics for viral infections?
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How do antiviral medications work differently from antibiotics?
How do antiviral medications work differently from antibiotics?
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What factor might make it more difficult for people to practice proper handwashing?
What factor might make it more difficult for people to practice proper handwashing?
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What is one way to promote resistance to infection through lifestyle choices?
What is one way to promote resistance to infection through lifestyle choices?
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Which of these would be the most effective slogan to debunk the myth that vaccines cause communicable diseases?
Which of these would be the most effective slogan to debunk the myth that vaccines cause communicable diseases?
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What should you do to take care of your health in preventing communicable diseases through respiratory etiquette?
What should you do to take care of your health in preventing communicable diseases through respiratory etiquette?
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Which method of preventing communicable diseases might be influenced by cultural factors in a community?
Which method of preventing communicable diseases might be influenced by cultural factors in a community?
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Study Notes
Preventing and Treating Communicable Diseases
Promoting Resistance to Infection
- A healthy lifestyle can keep the immune system in good shape
- Ways to support the immune system:
- Eat a balanced diet with plenty of fruits, vegetables, and fiber
- Get 8-10 hours of sleep
- Develop strategies for managing stress
- Get plenty of physical activity
- Avoid alcohol, tobacco products, and medication and drug abuse
- Get regular checkups with your doctor
Washing Your Hands
- Hand washing is the most important method of preventing many communicable diseases
- When to wash your hands:
- After using the bathroom or changing a diaper
- Before preparing and eating food
- After blowing your nose or having contact with other bodily fluids
- After handling trash, waste, or uncooked meat and fish
- Before and after visiting a healthcare facility
- When your hands are visibly dirty
- How to wash your hands:
- Rub your hands together, including palms, backs, fingernails, in between fingers, bases of thumbs, and wrists
- Rinse your hands and dry them completely
Practicing Respiratory Etiquette
- Respiratory etiquette helps prevent the spread of diseases from direct skin contact
- How to practice respiratory etiquette:
- Cover your mouth with a tissue when coughing or sneezing
- Do not reuse or store used tissues
- Throw used tissues in the trash after use
- If you have no tissues, cough or sneeze into your upper arm, sleeve, or elbow
- Wash your hands after using a tissue or sneezing and coughing into your hands
Getting Vaccinations
- Vaccination is the only proven method of successfully eliminating a communicable disease
- Vaccination activates the immune system and is also called immunization
- Examples of diseases that have been or will be conquered by vaccination:
- Smallpox
- Polio
Treating Communicable Diseases
- Treatment for communicable diseases depends on the type of pathogen involved
- Antibiotics are used to treat bacterial infections
- To avoid contributing to antibiotic resistance:
- Use the entire dose for the length of time prescribed by your doctor
- Do not share antibiotics with other people
- Do not take leftover antibiotics
- New strategies to combat antibiotic resistance:
- Using bacteriophages, or viruses that naturally kill specific bacteria
- Using computers and artificial intelligence to design and test new antibiotics
- Attacking bacterial biofilms
Review
- Hand washing is the universally acknowledged most important method of preventing communicable diseases
- Respiratory etiquette helps prevent the spread of diseases from direct skin contact
- Vaccination protects the body from communicable diseases by activating the immune system
- Antibiotics should not be taken for viral infections
- Antiviral medications work differently from antibiotics
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Description
Learn ways to promote resistance to infection, importance of hand washing, respiratory etiquette, and treatment of various infections. Understand how vaccination prevents disease.
