Scariest Diseases of the 21st Century

According to World Health Organization, people around the world are getting bombarded with major health threats at an unparalleled rate. From recent Ebola cases to brain-eating amoeba, to antibiotic resistant superbugs, I wonder if we may lose half the population and plunge back into the dark ages in this decade. To help prepare myself (and you) for possible pandemics and epidemics and to avoid becoming “that one guy who died from that scary disease,” I have put together a list of some of the scariest diseases of the 21st century.

1. SARS or Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome has become a concern after the disease rampaged through China and other parts of Southeast Asia. SARS is an infectious disease with a high mortality rate. It transfers to humans from animas, primarily poultry, and causes respiratory symptoms, such as pneumonia-like symptoms, that range from mild to severe. It can spread and reach pandemic levels quickly.
2. Swine flu. Swine flu, or H1N1 virus was also on the list of health scares, resulting in thousands of people hospitalized around the world. The virus is a mutated version of the regular old flu that spread from pigs to humans (hence the name). It spreads like wildfire and causes moderate to severe flu symptoms, including severe respiratory and gastrointestinal symptoms.
3. MRSA. MRSA stands for Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus. It is a strain of staph bacteria that has developed resistance to most antibiotics due to them being overprescribed in the preceding decades. MRSA spreads primarily in hospitals and nursing homes and can affect any part of the body. Most frequently it finds its way in through a broken skin and causes a painful boil that has to be surgically drained.
4. Ebola. Ebola is a deadly virus that is spread by direct contact with bodily fluids, such as saliva, blood, sweat, urine and diarrhea. The virus causes a wide range of symptoms including fever, vomiting, muscle pain and bleeding. The World Health Organization fears it may be a pandemic and unfortunately as of this writing African countries most affected by the virus are not at all prepared to deal with the outbreak.
5. Cholera. Cholera is not an old world disease as many tend to think. As we have seen in Haiti in 2010, cholera can affect areas that have been hit by natural disasters (namely hurricanes, typhoons and floods). You can get cholera by drinking contaminated water or eating contaminated food. Symptoms include gastrointestinal issues and fever. Many of the fatal cases occur due to dehydration.
6. Pneumonic Plague. This disease last occurred in India in 2002 and thankfully it was brought to a halt by swift action from health officials. Prior to this, India suffered from an outbreak in 1994 when the disease spread so quickly, the health system didn’t have a chance to blink before hundreds of people died from it.
7. Dengue fever. This disease is caused by bites by infected mosquitoes. It is common in tropical areas. Symptoms include rash, fever headaches, muscle and joint pain. Dengue fever is a deadly disease and when an outbreak happened in Pakistan in 2011, around 300 people died.
8. Chronic diseases. These made an honorable mention. Due to poor food quality and environmental issues, more and more people are crippled by diabetes, cancer, heart disease and other chronic illnesses.

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