Infection

Infection
By Wendy Simons

Infection is the entry of germs into a body and their multiplication which could be described as an "invasion". The invading germs are living organisms such as a virus or bacteria but also yeast and fungi. When these organisms multiply so much that the human body can not cope this is referred to as an infection and usually the body displays symptoms. An infection can occur anywhere in the body and can remain localized or spread throughout the body(systemic).

Skin is the first defense against invading bacteria and other microbes. However there are occasions when this is just not good enough. Obviously if the skin is damaged so is the defense against an infection but there are also areas of the body that are weak against infection(by comparison). The mouth, lungs and sexual organs are likely routes for bacteria or virus to take to get into your body.

Over recent years there has been an alarming increase in Tuberculosis (TB), which develops when Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacteria are inhaled into the lungs. One of the reasons for this is that persons infected with tuberculosis harbor the bacteria without developing symptoms(some estimates say that up to 90% of people infected with TB never develop TB disease). This bacteria gets into the air when someone who has a tuberculosis lung infection coughs, sneezes, shouts, or spits. This, infected, air is then inhaled and the cycle continues. Treatment for TB includes antibiotics to kill the bacteria and treatments can last 12 months or more.

A worldwide problem is the increasing number of people infected with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus. HIV is the virus that causes AIDS. The infection is usually passed from person to person during unprotected sexual intercourse. More than half of adults who have HIV will develop AIDS within 12 or 13 years if they do not get treatment. Unfortunately this is expensive and poorer nations can not afford it.

Another common type of infection is a computer virus. This type of virus is not organic, it is a small program or piece of code that causes the computer to malfunction. These viruses can be avoided with the use of anti-virus software. While this is interesting in this section we will be concentrating on organic infections and we hope that you find the free articles below useful.

Author Details:
Wendy Simons, copywriter for various web sites including, The A to Z of Home Infection, part of an ambitious project to cover various subjects.

Source: Information Junkie

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