Diarrhoea

Diarrhoea kills over 1 million children every year through dehydration and malnutrition. Children are more likely than adults to die from diarrhoea because they become dehydrated more quickly. About one in every 200 children who contract diarrhoea will die from it.

Diarrhoea is caused by germs that are swallowed, especially germs from faeces. This happens most often where there is unsafe disposal of faeces, poor hygiene practices or a lack of clean drinking water, or when infants are not breastfed. Infants who are fed only breastmilk seldom get diarrhoea.

If families and communities work together, with support from governments and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), they can do much to prevent the conditions that cause diarrhoea.