Nine
Healthy Living practices
At the heart of the Housing for Health method are the
Healthy Living Practices (HLPs).
Being able to use functioning
washing facilities reduces the spread of diseases, including diarrhoeal
disease, respiratory disease, hepatitis and infections. The rates of these
diseases in some Australian Indigenous communities are as high as in many
developing countries and are many times higher than for non-Indigenous
children. Diarrhoeal and respiratory diseases, in particular, are the
major causes of illness amongst Indigenous children and also play a major
role in the malnutrition experienced in the first three years of life.
Being able to regularly wash clothes
and bedding can help reduce the incidence of infectious diseases, such as diarrheal
disease, respiratory infections, scabies and other skin infections.
Waste water leaks and overflows
around the living environment can make people sick.
Disease-causing bacteria can be transmitted if people or animals come into
direct contact with waste water or if the drinking water supply is
contaminated with waste water. So removing waste water safely from living
areas, and managing it safely around the community, is critical to keeping
people healthy.
Poor nutrition is one factor contributing
to Indigenous people having high rates of obesity, diabetes,
cardiovascular disease and renal disease. Poor nutrition is also a major
cause of infectious diseases in children. In remote communities, choosing
a healthy diet is complicated by factors such as low incomes, the cost
of food, local store management practices and the ability to store,
prepare and cook food at home.
Crowded living conditions increase
the risk of the spread of infectious diseases, such as meningococcal
disease, rheumatic fever, tuberculosis and respiratory infections. In a
crowded house it can also be more difficult to access health hardware,
such as a working shower, toilet, hot water and washing
machines. Increasing house size does not guarantee reduced crowding.
Increasing house function does.
People’s health is badly affected by
contact with animals, vermin and insects in the living environment.
Examples include:
- Mosquito borne illnesses,
- Chronic gut parasite carried by dogs,
- Dustmites causing increased levels of asthma,
- Flies carrying trachoma bacteria that impacts on eye
health,
- Mice and rats attacking electrical cables and water
pipes.
Many small communities, particularly
in rural and remote areas, experience problems with dust, caused by either
unsealed roads or vacant land in the community or from dust that is blown into
the community from surrounding arid, rural or drought affected lands.
Dust causes direct health problems
through the irritation of mucosal surfaces and the skin, which contributes to
eye diseases, such as trachoma, respiratory disease and skin infections.
Living in houses that are too cold
or too hot can contribute to a range of physical illnesses, as well as
emotional distress. The young and elderly are most at risk
from temperature extremes. Dehydration is a major risk factor for young
children.
If houses are poorly designed and
constructed, or not well maintained, there is an increased risk that
residents may be injured. Elderly people, people with disabilities and
young children are particularly at risk. Injuries may require medical
treatment or hospitalization and could result in infections or even
disability.
The entire link can be found at: http://www.healthabitat.com/housing-for-health/the-healthy-living-practices
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