Lesson 6: Clean and Green Environment (PDF)

## Lesson 6: Clean and Green Environment ### Get Set Have you been sick with a fever lately? Having a cold with your nose turning red and sore from wiping too often is never a good feeling. Neither is having diarrhea that wakes you up in the middle of the night with the awful feeling like your st...

## Lesson 6: Clean and Green Environment ### Get Set Have you been sick with a fever lately? Having a cold with your nose turning red and sore from wiping too often is never a good feeling. Neither is having diarrhea that wakes you up in the middle of the night with the awful feeling like your stomach wants to turn inside out! It is a good thing that you received medical intervention at once and your body got well. But do you know that acute respiratory infection and dehydration from diarrhea are important contributing causes of death among children here in the Philippines? The same is true in other developing countries, according to the World Health Organization. The worsening conditions of slum dwellers in big cities contribute to the increased incidence of diseases. Diarrhea is common when there is improper handling and distribution of water supply. ### Go and Learn That a clean environment makes members of the community fit and healthy. What are some of the diseases and disorders caused by poor environmental sanitation? | Diseases and Disorders | |---|---| | Respiratory Diseases | Skin Diseases | | Gastro-intestinal Diseases | Neurological Impairment (Lead and Mercury Poisoning) | ### What are respiratory diseases? Illnesses that affect the respiratory system including the nerves and muscles of breathing are called respiratory diseases. Examples are the common cold, sore throat, rhinitis, asthma, and primary complex or tuberculosis. These problems are triggered by poor sanitation and hygiene practices. Children whose body resistance is low are more prone to respiratory illnesses. One of the common respiratory illnesses brought about by poor environmental sanitation is the common cold. When you experience itching or sore throat, runny nose, sneezing, nasal congestion, watery eyes, and mucus drainage, then you have the symptoms of the common cold. The common cold is a viral infection of the upper respiratory tract caused by many different viruses. ### What are gastrointestinal diseases? Gastrointestinal diseases refer to diseases involving the gastrointestinal tract, namely the esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, and rectum, and the accessory organs of digestion, the liver, gallbladder, and pancreas. Poor personal hygiene, poor environmental sanitation, and limited access to clean water lead to some gastrointestinal diseases like: 1. **Diarrhea** is the opposite of constipation. It is the condition of unusual frequent and liquid bowel movement. Some of the causes of the infection are viruses, bacteria and other organisms, and contaminated food. 2. **Cholera** is an infection of the small intestine that may result in severe diarrhea. This can lead to dehydration, electrolyte imbalance, and even death if untreated. Transmission occurs primarily by drinking water or eating food that has been contaminated. Cholera can be prevented by access to safe drinking water, good hygiene, and good sanitation. 3. **Dysentery** is an infectious disease. It is passed through the ingestion of food and water that has been contaminated. The transmission is often by infected individuals who handle food with unwashed hands. It commonly occurs when people are crowded together and do not have access to proper sanitation facilities. ### What are neurological impairments? Neurological impairments are diseases that are related to the brain and spinal cord. One cause of this problem is mercury poisoning. Mercury poisoning is a type of metal poisoning and medical condition caused by exposure to mercury or its compounds. You may have heard of factories that used the heavy metal mercury in their industrial production. Some of these mercury escape in the environment of these factories. When the heavy metal mercury comes in contact with people, it can seriously affect the vision, hearing, and speech. ### What are skin diseases? The skin is the largest organ of the body that contains nerve endings that sense pain, cold, and heat. When the skin comes in contact with pollutants, it results to some illnesses like eczema, scabies, ringworms, and other skin infections. ### Read Online and Learn Go online and learn about neighboring Asian cities like Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Singapore that are all well-known for cleanliness. Find out which respiratory, gastrointestinal, and skin diseases are common in these places. ### Health Hub #### Activity 1: Observe and Decide 1. Pair Work. Interview at least five people from your community. Ask them if they have suffered from the following diseases and disorders and write down the disease they have suffered. | Diseases | Yes | No: | |--------- | ----|-------| | Respiratory Diseases | | | | Skin Diseases | | | | Gastrointestinal Diseases | | | | Neurological Impairment (lead and mercury poisoning) | | | 2. Ask each of them the cause associated with those diseases and if they consider problems in their environment such as pollution as one of the causes of their ailments. 3. Lastly, ask them how they can help solve the environmental problems in their community. #### Activity 2: Young Environmental Advocate In groups of three or four, come up with a brochure, a pamphlet, or a leaflet that will serve as a campaign material for prevention of diseases and disorders caused by poor environmental sanitation. Add words and sentences that will convince readers of the bad effects of a dirty environment to the people's health. Include drawings or pictures of air and water pollution and pictures of sick children. ### Think and Learn Reflect on your answer to the following questions: 1. Have any member of your family gotten sick with the following diseases? - Respiratory diseases such as asthma - Gastrointestinal diseases such as diarrhea - Skin diseases 2. What could possibly cause asthma, diarrhea, and skin diseases? Is there a link between these diseases and dirty surroundings? 3. What should you do to be able to help your family maintain a clean environment? ### Remember and Learn 1. Environmental sanitation is important for the protection of the health and welfare of the public. 2. Poor sanitation and lack of access to clean water may lead to respiratory diseases, gastrointestinal diseases, and skin diseases. 3. Lack of proper sanitation also results in the spread of diseases. ## Lesson 7: Let Us Keep Our Environment Clean ### Get Set Environmental problems like air and water pollution are some of the negative effects of improper waste disposal. When a place is dirty or polluted, people living there can easily get sick. Pollution can also kill or sicken plants and animals. As a member of the community, it is our duty to keep our place clean. Our health depends largely on our environment that includes land, water, air, and even the level of noise around us. Good practices on environmental sanitation greatly affect the quality of life of the people. ### Go and Learn That environmental sanitation is a shared responsibility. ### What is environmental sanitation? Environmental sanitation means keeping the environment free of pollution so that those living in the community will be able to protect themselves and improve their health. Good sanitation also reduces health problems and diseases. ### What are included in environmental sanitation? 1. **Clean Water** Access to clean and potable water is a basic need. In the barrios, the main sources of drinking water are wells and springs but in other areas, the sources are lakes and rivers. However, due to contamination and pollution, some of these water sources are no longer