World Diarrhea Deaths Reduced

The number of children dying worldwide of diarrhea has reduced between 2005 and 2015, researchers have found.

The researcher says that better access to clean water and sanitation is key to stay away from  diarrhea.

New improved vaccines have also had a positive impact. However, diarrhea is still among the biggest threat to children worldwide, with almost over 500,000 a year dying before their fifth year birthday.

Prevention and treatment

Diarrhea is indirectly responsible for large numbers of deaths, through exacerbating the effects of other diseases, such as pneumonia and measles.

Diarrhea diseases, such as rotavirus and cholera, are spread by contaminated water. They are preventable and treatable.

While deaths from diarrhea have dropped by just over 20% overall, and 34% in children, the rate of infection has been falling far more slowly.

For children it dropped by just over 10% between 2005 and 2015. Of all the diarrhea diseases, rotavirus remains the biggest killer of under-fives, according to this study.

But death rates for the disease were down by 44% in 2015. The researchers attribute much of this to a relatively new vaccine.

How to prevent diarrhoea

•  Safe drinkable water

• Improved sanitation

• Hand washing with soap

• Exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life

• Good personal and food hygiene

• Education about how infections spread

• Rotavirus vaccination 

CREDIT: BBC NEWS