Acclimatization and My Health
Have you ever thought why some people despite them being so perfect, clean and healthy about their body and skin still get sick or infected by a disease? There are wide reasons to speak about such as a slightly weak immune system due to stress or obesity, being resistant to certain bacterial and viral infections or allergies, environmental factors such as pollutants and toxins but a very unique factor that affected my immaculate sister into an infection called ‘athlete foot’ is caused by the sudden climate change of us shifting from Dubai a very warm region to Islamabad a mild and less hot region.
Such a change is referred to as acclimatization in which an individual organism adjusts to a change in its environment, allowing it to maintain fitness across a range of environmental determinants of health: clean air, safe drinking water, and sufficient food and secure shelter. It is the single biggest health threat facing humanity exclusively in areas with weak health infrastructure, mostly in developing countries like our dear country Pakistan, where there is the least chance available to cope without assistance or prepare and respond. Any emigrant or foreigner like Me or maybe even You who comes to Pakistan can relate to the various infections, allergies and diseases we muddle through due to our sensitive skins or body types that have been accustomed to the region we came from and so take a while to adjust, our fastidious and penetrating diets may not be able to handle the spice of the local food shop, we may catch allergies to unfamiliar crops or pleasant fruits and food items that we never came across , a very detrimental and risky choice of using public washrooms and eating contaminated food items causes extensive infections and diseases and lastly, differences in weather patterns such as from a warm hot region to a very cold tough region means irregular fevers and sickness. And not just people but firstly, the people who contribute least to such causes and are least able to protect themselves and their families against it are mostly people in low-income and disadvantaged communities. Let’s take an example from Todays date: Massive flood arrivals have caused people to leave their homes and start a new life elsewhere. Those poor people, jobless with no food or shelter are resolute to be in their best prime of life. But, HOW??
We as moral people need to work for the benefit of our land by reducing emissions of greenhouse gases through better transport, food and energy-use
choices can result in improved health, particularly through reduced air pollution, well charitable donations and volunteering to manage with harsh situations and to protect from later circumstances. Scientific advances progressively allow us to attribute an increase in morbidity and mortality to human-induced warming, and more accurately determine the risks and scale of these health threats so why not use them for a prodigious and safe environment! Just like our favorite childhood doctors used to say “an Apple a Day keeps the Doctor away”, we need to start working from TODAY to have a recovered, superior and healthier TOMORROW!
IGCSE 1A
Roots Millennium Schools One World Campus, Islamabad