You have probably read a great deal about the coronavirus outbreak thus far, whether this is of your choosing or forced upon you by the mass media. At times, turning on the tv might feel as if you have tuned in to one of those apocalypse movies that start with a man-created virus - the COVID 19 virus - that sweeps the world in a deadly pandemic.
The COVID 19 Virus Spreading Like Wildfire
Warning: Disturbing Photos & Video!
More than four million people have been confirmed infected with the potentially lethal disease, the COVID 19 virus originating from Wuhan, China. Almost, 300.000 few have died thus far. It is not just the medical world that is frantically trying to find ways of reigning in the outbreak; other industries are equally affected - from the hit that China’s famed sector is taking to airlines ceasing their China operations and politics’ attempts to ban anything and anyone coming from the affected region.
The one industry that is thriving is that for face masks, which are now sported by those who still dare to walk on the streets of ground-zero city Wuhan. Although its protective effect has not been proven thus far, people are eager to find a way of averting this imminent doom. The disease that once started as a relatively innocent bug floating around at a live animal market is now beginning to gain traction and spreading fast and furiously.
Man-Made Diseases: COVID 19 Explained
While the name - Corona - might put you in a sunny mood, thinking of warm beaches and refreshing lemon-infused beer, nothing would have been further from the minds of the group of Chinese scientists who isolated, identified, and named the coronavirus or COVID 19. Their consensus is that the disease jumped from animal to man at the end of last year, with bats being the main suspect for having transferred it - possibly through other animals - to us.
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And while some may claim that this virus is just a stroke of bad luck, the reality is that we are the ones who started it. We are responsible for every person that dies at the hands of this horrible disease. No, we did not singlehandedly inject a supervirus like the COVID 19 into the blood flow of unsuspecting fellow human beings - that I give you. But we did create the circumstances that have allowed all of the current heartbreak to occur.
Destroying Habitats For Animals And Their Diseases
This includes the fact that we are overcrowding our planet, which is seemingly bursting at its seams. Never before have there been so many of us, a growth that is expected to continue exponentially. This means that we are continually trying to find more places to live and more food to put in our mouths. All 7.6 billion of us are trying to find our place in this world, and if this means that we have to take it away from precious rainforests, savannahs, and wetlands, then so be it.
This may explain the spread of China's COVID 19
We are using up the earth’s scarce resources and polluting her to a point where she will no longer be able to rebound on her own accord. At the same time, we are moving into the habitat of animals, who will find themselves forced to relocate to lands that they not suited for. The distance between animals and humans has decreased, making it much easier for diseases to jump from animal to human.
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Add to this that we are eager for food, and it is not hard to see why this forced relocation of animals will lead to an increase in animal trade as well. Viruses like the COVID 19 that were previously only hosted by animals are now uprooted similarly. They also need a different ecosystem, and unfortunately, we make some pretty good hosts.
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Live Animals Markets At The Root
The number of diseases that have evolved in such a fashion is numerous. SARS, MERS, Ebola, West Nile, bird flu, H.I.V. - all examples of how we are getting too close to animals. It does not help that live animal markets are still mostly unregulated in large parts of Asia and Africa, meaning that a wide variety of wild animals can be traded quickly and freely.
These omnivorous markets are as fascinating to the Western eye as they are dangerous. Animals that are generally not confronted with humans - or each other - are packed together tightly in a loud and mostly unhygienic setting. Ground zero for dangerous disease mutations if you ever saw one. Granted, China has now forbidden such markets, although many fear this is merely a temporary measure in response to the coronavirus.
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BioIndustry To Blame Equally
Westerners typically look down upon the live animal trading practices that are commonplace to our eastern neighbors. Unfortunately, they are far from saints either. In Europe and North America, the bio-industry is thriving - with farms looking more and more like factories instead of traditional animal husbandry operations. In these livestock factories, animals are equally packed, allowing for a natural spread of diseases.
The BSE-disease did not originate from some exotic animal; it was our own, trustworthy cow that caused all of the distress. Affected animals are quick to infect one another and, if close to other animals or humans, create some hybrid virus that could prove to be lethal. The widespread use of antibiotics in the sector is only adding to this problem, creating super energetic and hyper resistant strains that are hard, if not impossible, to treat.
So, time to ‘fess up. We did create the coronavirus COVID 19. Through our lackluster attitude towards animals and animal trade. Through our insatiable urge to expand, and thus reduce treasured ecosystems through our profit-oriented way of living. And yes, it is much harder to cure the virus than it seemingly was to create it. This juxtaposition should, in and of itself, provide sufficient food for thought for those who still refuse to face the truth.
Before you go!
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