See, Play and Learn No links available. Research Clinical Trials Journal Articles. Resources Find an Expert. For You Children Teenagers Women. What are germs? How do germs spread? You can help protect yourself and others from germs: When you have to cough or sneeze, cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or use the inside of your elbow Wash your hands well and often.
Protozoa are, like bacteria, one-celled organisms and many are able to move on their own. Protozoa love moisture, so intestinal infections and other diseases they cause are often spread through contaminated water.
Some are also encapsulated in cysts, which help them live outside the human body and in harsh environments for long periods of time. View Survey. Once organisms like bacteria, viruses, fungi, and protozoa invade a body, they get ready to stay for a while. These germs draw all their energy from the host. They may damage or destroy healthy cells. As they use up your nutrients and energy, they may produce proteins known as toxins. Some toxins cause the annoying symptoms of common colds or flu-like infections, such as sniffles, sneezing, coughing, and diarrhea.
But other toxins can cause high fever , increased heart rate, low blood pressure, a generalized inflammatory response in the body, and even life-threatening illness. Most germs are spread through the air in sneezes or coughs or through body fluids like sweat, saliva, semen, vaginal fluid, or blood. So limiting contact with those substances, as far as possible, is our best protection against germs. Teaching kids the importance of hand washing is absolutely the best way to stop germs from causing sickness.
Use warm water and plenty of soap, then rub your hands together vigorously for at least 15 seconds away from the water. Rinse your hands and finish by drying them well on a clean towel. When working in the kitchen, wash your hands before you eat or prepare food, and make sure that kids do the same.
Use proper food-handling techniques , such as separate cutting boards, utensils, and towels for preparing uncooked meat and poultry; and warm, soapy water for cleaning utensils and countertops. Cleaning household surfaces well is also important. Wipe down frequently handled objects around the house, such as toys, doorknobs, light switches, sink fixtures, and flushing handles on the toilets. If germs invade our bodies, they snuggle in for a long stay.
They gobble up nutrients and energy, and can make toxins say: TOK-sinz , which are proteins that act like poisons. Those toxins can cause symptoms of common infections, like fevers, sniffles, rashes, coughing, vomiting, and diarrhea.
How do doctors figure out what germs are doing? They take a closer look. By looking at samples of blood, pee, and other fluids under a microscope or sending these samples to a laboratory for more tests, doctors can tell which germs are living in your body and how they are making you sick. Most germs are spread through the air in sneezes, coughs, or even breaths. Germs can also spread in sweat, saliva spit , and blood. Some pass from person to person by touching something that is contaminated, like shaking hands with someone who has a cold and then touching your own nose.
Now that you know the facts about germs, you may still pick up a cough or a cold once in a while, but you'll be ready to keep most of those invading germs from moving in. Larger text size Large text size Regular text size. But there is a group of tiny invaders that can make our bodies sick — they're called germs. What Are Germs? What Types of Germs Are There? Others, such as malaria, are spread by mosquitoes.
Helminths are among the larger parasites. The word "helminth" comes from the Greek word for worm. If these parasites — or their eggs — enter your body, they take up residence in your intestinal tract, lungs, liver, skin or brain, where they live off your body's nutrients.
Helminths include tapeworms and roundworms. There's a difference between infection and disease. Infection, often the first step, occurs when bacteria, viruses or other microbes that cause disease enter your body and begin to multiply. Disease occurs when the cells in your body are damaged — as a result of the infection — and signs and symptoms of an illness appear.
In response to infection, your immune system springs into action. An army of white blood cells, antibodies and other mechanisms goes to work to rid your body of whatever is causing the infection. For instance, in fighting off the common cold, your body might react with fever, coughing and sneezing. What's the best way to stay disease-free? Prevent infections. You can prevent infections through simple tactics, such as washing your hands regularly, avoiding close contact with people who are sick, cleaning surfaces that are touched often, avoiding contaminated food and water, getting vaccinations, and taking appropriate medications.
Your doctor can perform diagnostic tests to find out if you're infected, the seriousness of the infection and how best to treat that infection. There is a problem with information submitted for this request.
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