Everyone knows of the annoyance caused by these creatures. They want to share food from your plate, drink from your cup, and read your newspaper while sitting on your nose!! But there are a wide number of diseases caused by houseflies and they are not only the annoying, and seemingly harmless creatures you may think.
The common housefly is not at all fussy where it eats and can often be seen on the feces of animals, garbage heaps, and decaying matter of any type. When the fly lands on your dinner plate it can pick up infections from such places and will transfer them to your food causing such diseases as –
Typhoid Fever. This disease is caused by a form of the Salmonella bacterium and has the symptoms of a very high temperature fever, loss of appetite and abdominal pain. It is readily treated with antibiotics, but if neglected can cause death.
Cholera. Although commonly associated with drinking contaminated water, the bacterium causing the disease, Vibria cholerae, can be transmitted to food eaten by people. Cholera results in watery diarrhea, a sticky mouth, and colored urine. Immediate treatment is necessary to include the intake of large amounts of water infused with salt and sugar.
Other diseases can be caused by infections from houseflies commonly caused by the bacterium Escherichia coli. The type of disease will depend on the type of this bacterium involved.
The strain known as Escherichia coli 0157:H7 can lead to acute diarrhea containing blood in the stools. It can lead to failure of the kidneys in younger children via a condition known as Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome. Most other strains of this bacterium are harmless to humans and many do indeed live symbiotically in the human gut.
The common housefly is not at all fussy where it eats and can often be seen on the feces of animals, garbage heaps, and decaying matter of any type. When the fly lands on your dinner plate it can pick up infections from such places and will transfer them to your food causing such diseases as –
Typhoid Fever. This disease is caused by a form of the Salmonella bacterium and has the symptoms of a very high temperature fever, loss of appetite and abdominal pain. It is readily treated with antibiotics, but if neglected can cause death.
Cholera. Although commonly associated with drinking contaminated water, the bacterium causing the disease, Vibria cholerae, can be transmitted to food eaten by people. Cholera results in watery diarrhea, a sticky mouth, and colored urine. Immediate treatment is necessary to include the intake of large amounts of water infused with salt and sugar.
Other diseases can be caused by infections from houseflies commonly caused by the bacterium Escherichia coli. The type of disease will depend on the type of this bacterium involved.
The strain known as Escherichia coli 0157:H7 can lead to acute diarrhea containing blood in the stools. It can lead to failure of the kidneys in younger children via a condition known as Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome. Most other strains of this bacterium are harmless to humans and many do indeed live symbiotically in the human gut.
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