People urged to be cautious about food and water use during monsoons

KARACHI: The current spell of monsoon showers has neutralized the intensity of summers and associated health conditions yet exposed the vulnerability of Karachiites to ailments ranging from diarrhea, dysentery, cholera to hepatitis E.

Doctors talking to APP Thursday urged citizens to be extremely careful with specific reference to consumption as well as application of water.

"As a rule of thumb I would urge people to develop a strong culture of hand washing each and every time before eating any thing and after being relieved," said Dr. Zafar Ahmed a GP running his clinic in Gulshan-e-Iqbal.

He said people as a general principle need to use adequately treated water particularly for drinking purpose as contaminated water that may even otherwise appear to be clean is the major triggering factor for varied water borne infections.

He mentioned that number of people complaining with diarrhea has increased during past few days and therefore it was necessary that precautions are taken to avoid any major outbreak.

Dr. Salma Khaliq said pregnant women must be extremely careful in this regard as they are vulnerable to Hepatitis E which if not adequately handled may lead to morbidity.

The two doctors responding to a query said application of tap water for washing eyes can also be a risk water for eye infections.

Dr. Anjum Ansar said the bottled water may not need to be boiled or treated in any other form, however, since the market is flooded with fake mineral water therefore people ought to be cautious.

Referring to health risks associated with rainy season Dr. Ansar urged people also to be cautious in food consumption.

"It must be well understood that over ripe fruits and stale food can lead to infections," said the senior family physician.

The doctors said vegetable and fruits that are otherwise advised to be taken skinned and in raw form must not only be adequately washed but also preferably left for a while in clean salty water.

As for cooked food they said all prepared dishes must be adequately heated immediately before being served for consumption.