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Cholera still a threat: Parirenyatwa
The Herald (Zimbabwe)
February 07, 2006

http://www.herald.co.zw/inside.aspx?sectid=212&livedate=2/7/2006%2012:00:00%20AM&cat=1

PEOPLE should shun food sold by vendors as the danger of contracting cholera is still lurking, Health and Child Welfare Minister Dr David Parirenyatwa has said.

His remarks came amid reports that cases of cholera continue to emerge in different parts of the country.

In an interview yesterday, Dr Parirenyatwa said people needed to be careful especially when it came to foods like fish and meat sold by vendors at open stalls.

Consumers, faced with diminishing purchasing power, are forced to buy from vendors who sell their products at low prices.

The meat sold by vendors is not inspected and the fish may have been caught in sewer-infected water, the minister cautioned.

"People should always put their health first no matter how cheap something might be.

"Buying meat and fish whose origins one is not even sure of is like signing a death warrant at this time when cholera cases continue cropping up here and there.

"While we are doing our utmost to monitor and keep on top of the situation, sometimes the best person to monitor one’s health is oneself," Dr Parirenyatwa said.

New cases of cholera were recently reported in Buhera with health officials saying some cases had been reported in Harare.

While many Zimbabweans went on alert after cholera claimed 14 people in Harare and Chikomba between December and January this year, some people thought they were out of danger and therefore relaxed.

Health officials said such lethargy is dangerous in light of the persistent rains.

Cholera is prevalent during the rainy season when waste is washed away, at times directly into water used for consumption.

As such there was need for people to continue exercising high levels of cleanliness, like washing fruits and vegetables and their hands every time before eating.

Dr Parirenyatwa said even the water used for cleaning the vegetables and fruits has to be clean.

Some people assume that once they dip fruits or vegetables into water they have cleaned them. Many have often just used dirty water for this purpose.

This is especially the case with vegetable vendors who use the same water to wash everything they will be selling.

Dr Parirenyatwa said because of the gravity of the cholera threat, it was high time people desisted from the habit of shaking hands with everyone they met.

"I am sorry but I think I have to tell people that the time to just shake hands with everyone is gone, even at funerals, maybe people need to start expressing sympathy in a different manner from what they are used to.

"This is because it is at such gatherings that diarrhoea outbreaks occur and when you just shake hands with other people, maybe they would not have washed their hands and you put your life in danger."

More than 250 cholera cases were reported this rainy season prompting the Government officials to join in the fight against the disease by banning the vending of all types of meat.

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