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Introduction |
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How They Work |
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How They Spread |
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Poverty and Disease |
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Prevention |
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Immunization |
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Unit 4
Poverty: Breeding ground for disease
MAIN TEXT
(GRADES 7-11)
More people, more risk
 Population Growth
The world's population is ever increasing. By the year 2020, the
population of the world is expected to top 7.9 billion - that's
2.2 billion people more than today. As it is, more than 1 billion
live in poverty. Nearly 28% of the developing world's population
cannot meet their basic needs for shelter, water and health from
their own resources. Unless global trends and social conditions
change, that figure will rise. The heaviest burdens of ill health
will be on people living in poverty.
Urban Growth
Sixty percent of the population increase is expected to be in
urban areas. Urban areas are generally healthier than rural areas
because there is greater access to health care. Still, an
estimate in 1990 suggested that 600 million urban dwellers in
developing countries lived in shelters and neighborhoods in which
their life and health was continually threatened because of
inadequate provision for safe, sufficient water supplies,
sanitation, removal of solid and liquid wastes and health care
and emergency services.
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