Viral Diseases - An Overview

You may not believe it, but there is a very long-standing relationship between human beings and viruses. As a matter of fact, virus has a long history of disconcerting and affecting people of all ages and races.

Before we go any further in details about how viruses affect people, we must know what actually a virus is?

What Is A Virus?

A virus can be termed as a microorganism that is not visible to the naked eye.  Virus is a very small organism and only attaches it self to living beings. The worse part about viruses is that they are highly contagious and communicable in nature and can cause a number of fatal as well as painful diseases and conditions.

When a virus attacks, it attaches it self to a living cell of the human body. During this time, it discharges its DNA or RNA, which ruins the proper functioning of that cell. The impact of viruses is so intense and strong that the whole body is affected by it.

Taking this into account, healthcare providers all around the world recommend a healthy diet rich in nutrition. This strengthens the resistance of the body against the viruses. This is the only way to protect yourself from virus apart from various vaccines that are given to prevent various conditions.

There are a large number of viruses, more than we can actually count. Point to be noted here is that some viruses infect humans, others animals while there are a few viruses that affect both.

Transmission of Virus

Viruses can be transmitted through the food you eat, the air you breathe and the water you drink. In most of the cases, people who tend to patients suffering from viral diseases get affected when they inhale the same air or come in contact with the sputum or blood of the patient.

Some Common and Deadly Viruses Are:

Few of the common and dangerous viruses are HIV virus, West Nile virus, and Polio virus that can cause most damage to human body and even lead to death.

HIV Virus

HIV is the kind of virus that destroys cells in the immune system of human body. HIV virus reaches the human body with after a person comes in direct contact with the affected individual such as through sex with a partner who is already HIV infected, human saliva, and of course HIV contaminated needles and syringes.
As no adequate cure is yet available to get rid of the effect of HIV, complete safety on your part is an absolute must.

Polio Virus

Large areas of Asian and African continents are still under the threat of Polio virus. This virus is very dangerous as it can lead to complete paralysis.

It is worth pointing that polio virus can infect people of any age. It enters the human body through mouth and later on reaches the intestine region where it rests. It has been noticed that this virus particularly destroys the legs of affected people leaving them unable to walk for the rest of their lives. This virus mostly affects children in their early years.

Common Diseases Caused By Viruses

Some common examples of diseases caused in human by viruses include:

• Common cold
• Flu
• Chickenpox
• Cold sores
• Herpes
• Shingles

In addition, serious diseases such as Ebola, AIDS, bird flu and SARS are all also caused by different set of viruses. If experts are to be believed, viruses have plenty of different routines through which they produce disease in an organism.

Detecting Viruses

Thanks to advancement in technology, there are a number of methods that can help in detecting viruses and viral diseases. In most of the cases, blood samples are taken that are observed under microscope to detect viruses.