Sicknesses that
Are Often Confused
17
CHAPTER
2
WHAT CAUSES SICKNESS?
Persons from different countries or backgrounds have different ways to explain
what causes sickness.
A baby gets diarrhea. But why?
People in small villages may
say it is because the parents did
something wrong, or perhaps
because they made a god or spirit
angry.
A doctor may say it is because
the child has an infection.
A public health officer may say
it is because the villagers do not
have a good water system or use
latrines.
A social reformer may say the unhealthy conditions that lead to frequent
childhood diarrhea are caused by an unfair distribution of land and wealth.
A teacher may place the blame on lack of education.
People see the cause of sickness in terms of their own experience and point of
view. Who then is right about the cause? Possibly everyone is right, or partly right.
This is because…
Sickness usually results from a combination of causes.
“Why my child?”
Each of the causes suggested above may be a part
of the reason why a baby gets diarrhea.
To prevent and treat sickness successfully, it helps
to have as full an understanding as possible about the
common sicknesses in your area and the combination
of things that causes them.
In this book, different sicknesses are discussed
mostly according to the systems and terms of modern
or scientific medicine.
To make good use of this book, and safe use of
the medicines it recommends, you will need some
understanding of sicknesses and their causes
according to medical science. Reading this chapter
may help.