What Does Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Have to Do With Nutrition? Everything.
Published on by Amanthi G. in Academic
In Yarou Plateau, a village in Mali, people used to use any open space for bathroom needs. You can imagine the consequences.
Flies could easily find fecal matter lying around, and from there land on food, spreading diseases like diarrhea and intestinal worms. Fecal matter in open areas also contaminated the groundwater, which villagers use for drinking and preparing food. In Yarou Plateau, frequent diarrhea was much too common among mothers and children.
This created a vicious cycle. Diarrhea can worsen malnutrition, and the undernourished already have weakened immune systems — making them more susceptible to intestinal infections and more severe episodes of diarrhea.
The situation in Yarou Plateau changed two years ago when the village’s chief, Hamidou Samakan, visited the neighboring village of Gouna. Gouna had transformed since Hamidou had last visited; it looked clean, with no noticeable feces and fewer flies. But it wasn’t just the pristine environment that impressed him. Hamidou noticed the villagers there appeared much healthier.
Taxonomy
- Sanitation
- Sanitation & Hygiene