The people exposed to arsenic in Bangladesh may be at higher risk of childhood respiratory tract infection and diarrhoea, says a new study of icddr,b, reports UNB.
The recent systematic review study found links between arsenic exposure and respiratory tract infections or diarrhoea.
"The harmful effects of arsenic are well-known yet many people including pregnant women continue to drink contaminated water," said Dr Anisur Rahman, head of icddr,b's Matlab Health Research Centre and author of the review, on an icddr,b web post.
"Experience from field-level interventions indicated that people once had limited knowledge of arsenic exposure. Despite knowing the risks many wanted continuous water flow. Rainwater harvesting, as an alternative, did not work in many areas and deep tube-well water may contain other elements in high concentrations, harmful to health," Dr Rahman observes.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), around 20 to 40 million people in the country are exposed to arsenic through drinking water or food, the long-term effects of which include skin lesions, cancer of various organs, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and developmental defects.
Children still had elevated arsenic exposure through contaminated food. Use of arsenic-contaminated water from shallow pumps for irrigation can introduce arsenic into crops such as rice or paddy, contaminating food supply chains.
Arsenic in staple food such as rice might have the most far reaching effect on a larger population.
Recent findings by icddr,b researchers provide further evidence that arsenic exposure affects lung function both in children and adults. Exposure to arsenic-laced drinking water while in the womb can hamper lung function in children for many years after birth.
"In addition, arsenic exposure may also interfere with specific vaccine response in children," says Dr Rubhana Raqib, senior scientist at icddr,b.
Dr Muhammad Yunus, an emeritus scientist at icddr,b with extensive experience of conducting arsenic related work, observed that research has generated a large body of evidence to support a wide range of negative health effects stemming from arsenic exposure.
"The adverse health consequences including increased death due to chronic arsenic exposure through drinking water are now well established by high quality scientific research from Bangladesh and other countries," he said.
Dr Yunus said research will continue to unearth more adverse effects, but ultimately concerted effort to ensure arsenic-free water for the affected communities is all that is required.
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