Introduction
Born on March 15 of 1813, John Snow was born and grew up in a very poor city near the River Ouse. Because his home was so close to the river, his neighborhood was always at risk of flooding. Snow studied and became an Anesthesiologist. Later on in his life, Snow earned the title of the "father of epidemiology" when he was able to track down the source of a cholera outbreak in a water system London.
John Snow's Hypothesis
One famous study that Snow carried out was when the Cholera outbreak in the Golden Square in London took place. By analyzing the relationship between the water supply sites and the outbreaks of cholera, Snow derived his hypothesis that contaminated water supplies cause disease outbreaks. He was able to arrive to this hypothesis without the help of advanced technology such as the microscope which is why his findings were of great significance for his time. Keep in mind, it was not known in this time that bacteria were possible origins of disease. Even without this knowledge Snow figured out the source of the cholera wave and put it to an end.
Cholera Epidemic in London
In 1854, London was hit harshly with an acute infectious disease by the name of Cholera. This disease took with it thousands of lives and devastated many families. When an individual is infected with Cholera, they experience violent vomiting and diarrhea. Because of the symptoms of Cholera, they lose huge amounts of body fluids and become dangerously dehydrated. If left untreated, the infected person will eventually die. Cholera is a waterborne disease, however when it struck London in 1854 people had pre-existing beliefs that it was airborne. That is why when John Snow proposed that it was infact a waterborne, many people thought he...
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...g in, and the level of education they receive. Similarly to how Snow showed the relationship between water supply and cholera deaths, this type of data would compare the social determinants f health and the cholera deaths. The areas where cholera erupted were poverty-stricken so health disparities definitely played a role in these areas.
The Role that Maps played in the Cholera Epidemic
The spot map Snow used played a huge role in identifying the source of the cholera wave. By drawing in spots of all the locations of the infected residents and also the water pumps, he could see that a certain pump had the most spots near or around it. The map served as a visual representation of what was happening and was a simple way to show himself and officials that the disease was waterborne rather than airborne.
Comparison of Current Fracking to the Historic Cholera Epidemic
Social determinants of health (SDOH) are increasingly becoming a major problem of Public Health around the World. The impact of resources and material deprivation among people and populations has resulted in an increase in mortality rate on a planetary scale. Social determinants of health are defined as the personal, social, economic and the environmental conditions which determines the health status of an individual or population (Gardner, 2013). Today’s society is characterized by inequalities in health, education, income and many other factors which as a result is becoming a burden for Public Health around the world. Research studies have shown that the conditions in which people live and work strongly influenced their health. Individuals with high levels of education and fall within the high income bracket turn to have stable jobs, live in the best neighborhood and have access to quality health care system than individuals who have low education and fall with the low income bracket. This paper is to explain different social determinants of health and how they play ...
The book, The Ghost Map, tells the story of the cholera outbreak that took place in England during the medieval era. During this time, London became popular, causing it to become one of the most populous urban cities in England. However, it suffered from overcrowding, a large lower class, and little health regulations. As a result, living conditions and water supply were not the cleanest, and many died from the disease cholera. Though this epidemic led to many deaths/illnesses during it’s time, it has proven to be helpful and important to public health today. Some public health advancements that have occurred as a result include healthier, cleaner, and longer lives lived.
Wilkinson, R. M. (2003). Social determinants of health - the solid facts. [S.l.]: World Health Organization.
The Cholera Epidemic of 1873 in the United States. 43d Cong. , 2d Sess. House. The.
By the 1840’s high rates of disease were ascribed to the housing many of New York’s poverty-stricken immigrants lived in. Fear spread that while disease was rooted in the polluted living conditions of New York’s poorer communities, disease could easily spread to the more well off citizens too. Public health officials realized that the city’s soiled streets and polluted sewers were a health risk to all New Yorkers. In the mid-nineteenth century, New York possessed a primitive sewage system. Poorly planned sewers spanned the city, but most citizens’ homes did not connect to these pipes. Instead, most New Yorkers relied on outdoor outhouses and privies. Because of the high levels of unmanaged waste, epidemics of infectious diseases were commonplace in New York. The city battled outbreaks of smallpox, typhoid, malaria, yellow fever, cholera, and tuberculosis. In 1849, a rash of cholera struck the city, killing more than five thousand people. A wave of typhoid in the mid-1860’s resulted in a similar amount of deaths. Port cities and transportation hubs, like New York, were especially prone to outbursts of infectious diseases because of the high volume of travelers that passed through the city. Americans realized that they were contracting and dying from infectious diseases at an alarming rate, but weren’t entirely sure of why or how. (Web, par. 17,
Wilkinson, R.G. & Marmot, M.G. 2003, Social determinants of health: the solid facts, World Health Organization.
Cholera is a water-borne disease caused by the spreading of toxins throughout the intestines by the Vibrio Cholerae bacterium. Bad hygiene and other unsanitary conditions such as contamination of food and water can result in this unpleasant infection. As stated in the Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine, “contamination starts when a person infected with cholera steps into a community water supply.” Cholera is more common in places with poor cleanliness and insufficient water treatment. These locations include environments consisting of brackish rivers and coastal waters such as an underdeveloped country like Africa. Cholera can affect anyone but is usually targeted at younger ch...
The people of the 14th century had no true understanding of the real cause and spread of the Black Death. The people were seen to have absolutely no understanding of the causes and spread of the Black Death as seen through their terrible remedies and cures they made up. These cures ranged from simple bloodletting or leaches to eating crushed emeralds or covering themselves in feces. The people's thoughts of the Black Death being a punishment from God or thinking that it was the apocalypse also highlighted their misunderstanding of the true cause and spread through rats and fleas. The people of the time also assumed the plague was air bound so headed for the sewers and other underground structures to try escape the fatal plague. The people did not understand the true cause or spread of the Black Death and had a devastating effect on society.
During the fourteenth century, bacteria and viruses were mostly unknown to doctors, which meant they were most certainly unheard of for the majority of the population. Now, it is widely believed that it was caused by bacterial strains. Back then, however, people had to produce their own reasons for the Plague. In Europe, the causes of the Black Death were said to be miasma (impure air) carried by the warm southern winds. The event of March 20, 1345, the conjunction of Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars, and excessively atrocious clothing were thought to add to the ubiquitous disease. In contrast, the people near the East believed that the said disease was supposedly caused by miasma as well, but due to wind carrying the vile odor of Mongol bodies...
According to the World Health Organisation (2017) the social determinants of health are defined as the conditions where people are born, grown, work and live, which also includes the health system. The social determinants of health determined populations health’s outcomes and therefore linked with health inequalities (WHO, 2017)
As the days went by and the number of deaths began to increase, the Board of Health in London began to improve people’s living conditions by creating the indoor restroom, This, however, caused more problems for the people of London, due to the lack of a proper sewage system, “London needed a citywide sewage system that could remove waste products from houses in a reliable and sanitary fashion,...,The problem was one of jurisdiction, not execution,”(Page 117). London didn’t have a place where the sewers could lead off to which keep the disease spreading when people used the restroom. After months of battling the type of disease London was faced with, Mr. Snow convinced the Board of Health to remove the water pump that was on Board Street. By getting rid of this pump, Mr. Snow helped stop major outbreaks from recurring, “The removal of the pump handle was a historical turning point, and not because it marked the end of London’s most explosive epidemic,..., It marks a turning point in the battle between urban man and Vibrio cholera, because for the first time a public institution had made an informed intervention into a cholera outbreak based on a scientifically sound theory of the disease.”(Page 162- 163). This marked the end of the London epidemic and how the world of science
Many rats and rodents flocked to the littered streets, finding morsels of anything that would satisfy their hunger. This is where the transportation of the plague would come to play. As the rodents feasted on the waste, the plague-infested fleas would jump to the nearest passerby. “The most devastating to England was the bubonic plague. Also known as, “"The Black Death", because of the black spots it produced on the skin. A terrible killer was loose across Europe, and medieval medicine had nothing to combat it”(Rice). London was afflicted over a dozen times during the 1500’s (Miller and Orr)”. Winters were usually mild, allowing the rats and rodents, which carried fleas to stay active throughout the winter months.
This book follows an esteemed doctor and a local clergyman who, together, are the heart of an investigation to solve the mystery of the cholera epidemic. In 1854 London was ravaged by a terrible outbreak of cholera, where within the span of mere weeks over five hundred people in the Soho district died. London, at the time, was a city of around two and a half million people, all crammed into a small area with no system for sewage removal. With overflowing cesspools, improper drainage of all the human and animal waste, and no system for guaranteed clean water, the people of London were in a bad state. They were essentially dumping all of their feces into their drinking water supply, a perfect environment for cholera to thrive.
of just how many people were affected by various diseases of the time, as stated by John
As mentioned cholera is seen in developing countries, it is especially rampant in Sub-Sahara Africa and South East Asia. The main cause of Cholera having epidemic proportion in developing countries is due to unclean and infected water source. We can see Cholera running rampant in disaster and refugee setting where people are cramped in a small space and the unsanitary conditions. A study done by WHO in India has seen epidemic conditions of Cholera outbreaks. They mostly have a seasonal outbreaks, most of the cases are not reported and seem to be unregistered. Findings Of India's 35 states or union territories, 21 reported cholera cases during at least one year between 1997 and 2006. The state of West Bengal reported cases during all 10 years, while the state of Maharashtra and the union territory of Delhi reported cases during nine, and Orissa during seven. There were 68 outbreaks in 18 states, and 222 038 cases were detected overall. This figure is about six times higher than the number reported to WHO (37 783) over the same period. The states of Orissa, West Bengal, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Assam and Chhattisgarh accounted for 91% of all outbreak-related cases. India has problems with sewage management, food and water safety is not monitored.