Higher Education and the Promotion of Health Essay

Higher Education and the Promotion of Health - Essay Example â€Å"Some illnesses are highly transmittable and can be passed on by touching an infected person or by getting in contact with the body fluids of the infected person† (Eddy, 1994). When the fluids of an infected person comes in contact with another the disease causing micro-organisms get transmitted to the other person. The other individual gets infected by the micro-organisms and becomes ill. Most of the causes of diseases are related directly to the environment where the individual lives or has visited. Environmental factors that cause diseases include the air that one breathes, food that one eats and the water than one drink. The air that one breathes may be contaminated by viruses that are airborne and may lead to the individual becoming ill. An example of an airborne disease is tuberculosis which is easily spread by air especially in crowded areas. Some individuals are allergic to specific foods, and if they take them by mistake, they become ill. Some diseases are waterborne, and if individuals take water that is contaminated they are a high risk of becoming ill. An example of a waterborne disease is cholera which greatly affects young children. Some diseases are caused by certain individual lifestyles such as eating habits. Eating foods that have high cholesterol levels and not engaging oneself in activities that help burn the cholesterol may lead to obesity and cardiac complications. Eating foods that have high sugar content may lead to high blood pressure and other related diseases. Some individuals have a lifestyle where they engage themselves in unprotected sex. Having unprotected sex is a very risky behavior as it makes one highly susceptible to contract sexually transmitted diseases and infections. Individuals who drink too much alcohol put themselves at a risk of getting a liver cirrhosis, and they need to reduce greatly or stop the intake of alcohol. â€Å"One needs to have a lifestyle that does not affect one’s health† (Naido