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Now, the real reason for the spread of waterborne illness in Chennai has been identified!!
Posted on: 22/Mar/2023 9:25:12 AM
The roadside shops (that sell juices etc) mushrooms during the summer season in Chennai is a well known fact. This is because the public during the hot and humid summers would have a special liking for the ice cold juices to beat the heat. Not many of us would know about the quality of the ice that is being used for preparing fresh juices.
The shocking piece of information is that the contaminated ice that is used to prepare fresh cold juices is responsible for the spread of waterborne illnesses like diarrhoea, cholera etc. This was according to some doctors working in the government hospitals in Chennai.
According to Dr. P. Balaji, dean of SMCH in Chennai, throat infections, diarrhoeal diseases, cholera and other bacterial based infections were common in the summer seasons. He threw light on how ice was prepared from unknown sources and used by many road side food and juice shops.
As the kids were more vulnerable, they got affected badly by consuming these foods and juices from roadside shops etc. Truth is that not only mixing of ice in the drinks could lead to many waterborne illnesses but poor preparation and unhygienic storing of ice also.
The increase in the risk of infection in Chennai could be due to handling of ice by the manufacturers and those who transport the ice to many places.
It was later revealed by Dr. Narednra Nath Jena, senior consultant, emergency medicine, in Meenakshi Mission Hospital and Research centre that the manufacturing units handle ice in huge quantities and the ice is stored in an unhygienic manner. Hence, there are more chances of ice getting contaminated easily. He added that the water used to prepare ice would not be clean most of the time. Infections cannot be contained if the water is contaminated.
To ensure that the ice manufacturing units do not violate any safety regulations etc, inspections are being conducted in the ice manufacturing units. This was mentioned by some officers from the food and safety dept. For preparing the juices, clean ice must be used compulsorily and this has been clearly instructed to the eateries and juice shops etc.
