Ebola and Muslim consciousness (I)

Until the recent outbreak of the ravaging Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), the Centres for Disease Control (CDC) of the World Health Organisation (WHO) had said that “Approximately half of all deaths caused by infectious diseases each year can be attributed to just three diseases: tuberculosis, malaria, and AIDS. Together, these diseases cause over 300 million […]

Until the recent outbreak of the ravaging Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), the Centres for Disease Control (CDC) of the World Health Organisation (WHO) had said that “Approximately half of all deaths caused by infectious diseases each year can be attributed to just three diseases: tuberculosis, malaria, and AIDS. Together, these diseases cause over 300 million illnesses and more than 5 million deaths each year.”
Unfortunately the HIV/AIDS is caused by a virus likewise the Hepatitis A Virus (HAV), Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) and Hepatitis C Virus (HCV), the three causing varying degrees of damage to the liver resulting to symptoms like jaundice, extreme fatigue, nausea, vomiting, and stomach pain with the HBV being the most common and most serious of them.
Smallpox and chickenpox are caused by a virus; likewise the Prion that caused the Mad Cow Disease is an infectious protein that is similar to a virus, though not a typical virus.
A virus (from the Latin noun virus, meaning toxin or poison) is a sub-microscopic particle (ranging in size from 20-300nm) that can infect the cells of a biological organism.
Bacteria on the other hand are relatively complex, single-celled creatures  that can reproduce on their own. They are typically a few micrometers long and have many shapes. Most bacteria are harmless, and some actually help by digesting food, destroying disease-causing microbes, fighting cancer cells, and providing essential nutrients. Less than 1 percent of bacteria cause diseases in humans.
According to James M. Steckelberg the most important distinction between bacteria and viruses is that antibiotic drugs usually kill bacteria, but they are not effective against viruses. In some cases, it may be difficult to determine whether a bacterium or a virus is causing your symptoms. Many ailments -such as pneumonia, meningitis and diarrhoea can be caused by either type of microbe.
Though the current Ebola epidemic has been the most severe since 1976 when it was first diagnosed, the world response has received mixed feelings. A lawyer and public commentator, Adeola Oyinlade said the way the world, especially Africa, has responded to the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) presented the continent to the world as people still living in the ‘stone age’.
One wonders the input of the Muslim scientists and other health experts in tackling the EVD in the face of the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV), which was first called novel coronavirus after sampling from patients who fell ill in a 2012 outbreak of a new flu.
The alarming rise of the present EDV outbreak led the WHO to on August 8, 2014 declare Ebola epidemic a worldwide emergency and appealed for global aid to help afflicted countries.
The Islamic Medical Association of Nigeria (IMAN), Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital (ABUTH) branch said in a publication that among ways of contacting EVD are contact with apparently healthy/infected/dead animals (bush meat) like bats, gorillas, monkeys, chimpanzees and porcupines. Pigs are also potential sources. These are generally haraam (forbidden) animals for Muslims to eat.
Though there are no known cures at present for Ebola, however early reporting, isolation and other forms of hospital-based interventions may improve the chances of survival and reduce the risks of transmission to family, friends and the community at large.
Among other measures of containment are frequent washing of hands with soap and water.
This was not however in deference to the Global Hand washing Day (GHD) initiated at the annual World Water Week in August 2008, at Stockholm Sweden to motivate and mobilise millions around the world to wash their hands with soap as a key approach to disease prevention. The first GHD however took place on October 15, 2008, the date appointed by the UN General Assembly for its mark.
However ages ago, it is widely known that Prophet Muhammad (saw) enjoined Muslims to wash their hands before and after meals.