New Delhi. Tired of polluted air, a large number of people turn to the Himalayan peaks for clean air. But be careful, a new study has found that desert dust rising from western India to the eastern Himalayan peaks is carrying with it dangerous bacteria or airborne pathogens on a large scale. These bacteria or airborne pathogens can cause you respiratory or skin diseases. Researchers at the Bose Institute, an autonomous institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DST), in their study found that the risk of diseases increases due to the cold and oxygen-poor air at high altitudes in the Himalayas.
The environment of the Himalayan mountain peaks is generally considered good for health. Researchers at the Bose Institute, an autonomous institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DST), after continuously monitoring dust storms originating from dry regions of western India for more than two years, found that powerful dust storms travel hundreds of kilometers. After crossing the densely populated and polluted Ganga plains, they finally come to rest in the Himalayan hills. These winds carry the bacteria present in the air. These bacteria can cause many types of diseases. In particular, many cases of respiratory and skin related diseases have been seen. The bacteria brought by the air from the plains, along with the local bacteria of the Himalayas, also cause stomach diseases in many cases.
In this study, scientists found that airborne microorganisms constitute up to 70 percent of atmospheric aerosols. Despite adverse conditions such as low humidity, lack of nutrients, intense solar radiation and temperature fluctuations, many bacterial species survive in substantial numbers in the air. These bacteria cause a large number of diseases. In the study, scientists found that due to the long transport of dust over the eastern Himalayas, 41 percent of the bacterial groups move from one place to another. The stream rising from the foothills contains 6 percent special types of bacteria, which mainly affect the respiratory system. Scientists found that desert dust contains 25 percent of the pathogenic bacteria that cause skin infections in humans.
Due to climate change, many changes are being seen in the weather. In areas where there is less rainfall, it is raining more, where there is more rainfall, it is raining less. At some places floods and at some places even droughts are being seen. Heat has increased in many areas and dust storms have increased in many. Due to increased heat and humidity in the air, a favorable environment has been created for mosquitoes. Rajendra Madhavrao Shende, former director of the United Nations Environment Programme, says that due to climate change, a better environment is being created for microorganisms. Hot and humid weather gives mosquitoes more time than usual to breed. At the same time, due to increase in the number of mosquitoes, the risk of diseases spread by them like Zika, Dengue, Chikungunya has also increased. In such a situation, we may see an increase in the cases of diseases spread by mosquitoes in the coming time.
Bacteria or mosquitoes that spread vector-borne diseases are sensitive to climate. Dr. Ramesh Dhiman, former principal investigator of ICMR Center of Excellence for Climate Change and Vector Borne Diseases, says that there is a lot of variation in geographical conditions in India. In such a situation, the situation is changing due to climate change. Where earlier there were no mosquitoes in the mountains, now cases of dengue and chikungunya are being found. Due to rising temperatures, it is also possible that in the future, these diseases may increase rapidly in areas where dengue and chikungunya cases are not found or are found very rarely. The growth and survival of disease spreading insects like mosquitoes, sand flies, bed bugs depend on temperature and humidity. These disease carriers can spread diseases like malaria, dengue, chikungunya, Japanese encephalitis, kala azar very rapidly. Due to changing weather, a better environment has been created for the breeding of mosquitoes all over the world. Now mosquitoes have started being found even in areas where they were not there earlier.
Chyawanprash is a part of every Indian's life, it reduces diseases and increases energy.