Question:
What are the different means by which infectious diseases are spread ? [SAII – 2011, 2013]
Answer:
The various means by which the infectious diseases get spread are :
- Through air : This occurs through the little droplets thrown out by an infected person who sneezes or coughs. Someone standing closeby can breathe in these droplets and the microbes get a chance to start a new infection. Examples of such diseases which spread through the air are the common cold, pneumonia and tuberculosis.
- Through water: This occurs if the excreta from someone suffering from an infectious gut disease, such as cholera, get mixed with the drinking water used by people living nearby.
The cholera-causing microbes will enter new hosts through the water they drink and cause disease in them. Such diseases are much more likely to spread in the absence of safe supplies of drinking water.
- Through sexual contact: Microbial diseases such as Syphilis or AIDS are transmitted by sexual contact from one partner to the other. Other than the sexual contact, the AIDS virus can also spread through blood-to-blood contact with infected people or from an infected mother to her baby during pregnancy or through breast feeding.
- Through vectors: There are certain animals which carry the infecting agents from a sick person to another potential host. These animals are thus the intermediaries and are called vectors. The commonest vectors are the mosquitoes which spread malaria. In many species of mosquitoes, the females anopheles need highly nutritious food in the form of blood in order to be able to lay mature eggs:
Why Do We Fall Ill?
Q 1.
Under which of the following conditions are you most likely to fall sick ?
(a) when you are taking examinations.
(b) when you have travelled by bus and train for two days.
(c) when your friend is suffering from measles. Why ?
Q 2.
State any two conditions essential for being free of disease.
Q 3.
Are the answers to the above questions (Q2 and Q5) and necessarily the same or different? Why?
Q 4.
Give four examples of Chronic diseases.
Q 5.
Give examples of fungal diseases.
Q 6.
What are acquired diseases?
Q 7.
Why are antibiotics not effective for viral disease ?
Q 8.
Name a disease which was earlier considered to be chronic but now can be treated in short duration?
Q 9.
Why are we normally advised to take bland and nourishing food when we are sick?
Q 10.
What is the alternate name of brain fever? Which vector is responsible for this disease?
Q 11.
What is immunisation?
Q 12.
How do Skin, Hairs, Saliva form the first line of defence against diseases?
Q 13.
What are the immunisation programmes available at the nearest health centre in your locality? Which of these diseases are the major health problems in your area ?
Q 15.
Why are we advised to take blend and nourishing food when we are sick ?
Q 16.
How many times did you fall ill in the last one year ? What were the illnesses ? (a) Think of one change you could make in your habits in order to avoid any/most of the above illnesses.
(b) Think of one change you would wish for in your surroundings in order to avoid any/most of the above illnesses.
Q 17.
(a) What is immunisation ?
(b) Define immunity and vaccination.
(c) Define vaccine. .
(d) What type of diseases can be prevented through vaccination ? [SAII -2013]
Q 18.
State any two conditions essential for being free of disease.
Q 19.
What are congenital diseases? Give two examples of such disease.
Q 20.
Define antibiotic? Explain how it is able to control bacterial infections but not viral infections.
Q 21.
Write differences between 'Being Healthy' and 'Disease Free'.
Q 22.
List any three reasons why you would think that you are sick and ought to see a doctor. If only one of these symptoms were present, would you still go to the doctor ? Why or why not ?
Q 23.
What do you mean by active and passive immunisation ? [SAll – 2015]
Q 24.
Classify the following diseases as infectious or non-infectious :
(a) AIDS (b) Tuberculosis
(c) Cholera (d) High blood pressure
(e) Heart disease (f) Pneumonia
(g) Cancer
Q 25.
What is a disease ? How many types of diseases have you studied ? Give examples.
Q 26.
Differentiate between Acute Diseases and Chronic Diseases.
Q 27.
Why is it important that we think of these categories of infectious agents?
Q 28.
Name the diseases that can spread through housefly.
Q 29.
What do you mean by Phagocytosis?
Q 30.
Why Colostrum is good for infants?
Q 31.
Differentiate between allergy and autoimmune diseases.
Q 32.
What are the different means by which infectious diseases are spread ? [SAII – 2011, 2013]
Q 33.
Name the target organs for the following diseases :
(a) Hepatitis targets…………
(b) Fits or unconsciousness targets…………
(c) Pneumonia targets…………
(d) Fungal disease targets…………
Q 34.
“On exposure with an infectious microbe does not necessarily mean developing noticeable disease”. Do you agree ? Explain with reason. If yes, how severe infections occur in our body ?
Q 35.
Becoming exposed to or infected with an infectious microbe (toes not necessarily mean developing noticeable disease. Explain.
Q 36.
Is there any difference between 'being healthy' and 'disease free'?
Q 37.
List the diseases caused by viruses?
Q 38.
Give three examples of bacterial diseases.
Q 39.
List the diseases caused by worms?
Q 40.
What are antibodies?
Q 41.
What are the immunisation programmes available at the nearest health centre in your locality? Which of these diseases are the major health problems in your area?
Q 42.
(a) What are epidemic and endemic diseases? (b) Which organ is affected if a person is suffering from jaundice?
Q 43.
Why it is advisable to breast feed the baby for first few several weeks?
Q 44.
Why are kids and elderly people more vulnerable to cold/flu?
Q 45.
What is an antibiotic ? Give its one example.
Q 46.
What is inflammation ? Write the symptoms of this in human body.
Q 47.
(i) What are the various ways to prevent the diseases ?
(ii) What is immunisation ?
Q 48.
In which of the following case do you think the long-term effects on your health are likely to be most unpleasant ?
- if you get jaundice ?
- if you get lice ?
- if you get acne. Why ?
Q 49.
A baby is not able to tell her / his caretakers that she / he is sick. What would help us to find out:
(a) that the baby is sick ?
(b) what is the sickness ?
Q 50.
Who discovered ‘vaccine’ for the first time ? Name two diseases which can be prevented by using vaccines.
