Toilets!

Ok- I'll admit it. There is nothing like toilet humor to make me laugh. Just the thought of it can elicit a giggle. (Many of you already know that). So when I came across the news that the newly formed World Toilet Association was having its first conference on November 22, hosted by none other than South Korea's Mr. Toilet, I smiled. That's so funny! The World Toilet Association!

However, once I stopped giggling, I began thinking. This, I realized, is a fantastic way to gather all these disparate people together to discuss how to save water by reducing the amount each toilet flushes. So provincial were my views. I only focused on the environmental benefits. Little did I consider the international health implications of a Toilet Association. It could save lives. (Scroll down to buy a toilet to save a life).

A Toilet Association has the power to bring toilets to those who don't have them. Specifically, to the 2.6 billion people who do not have them. As some of you might know, about 2 million people die each year from diarrhea, 90% of whom are children. I have always maintained that it is an outrage that children are still dying of diarrhea. While access to toilets is certainly not the magical panacea for this and other causes death, it's a fantastic and underrated start.

Let's first start with the leading causes of preventable death. These are: lower respiratory infections, HIV/AIDS, diarrheal diseases, tuberculosis, malaria and measles. They account for 90% of preventable deaths worldwide. Astounding. Cholera, while not in the top six, also takes a substantial amount of lives. (Footnote 1) Of these diseases, malaria, diarrhea, tuberculosis and cholera would be far less fatal if clean water and adequate sanitation was widely accessible. Why? Because these are communicable diseases, meaning diseases that one obtains from physical contact with infected persons or things, such as foods, body fluids, liquids, the air and other contaminated objects. This means that the cruder and more overcrowded your living conditions are, the more likely you are to get a disease from your neighbor. This is particularly true if the disease is transmitted through airborne inhalation, or is a water-borne disease like diarrhea. Hence, the dire need for toilets.

Disease and bugs carrying diseases are naturally attracted to the waste that a toilet disposes of. One gram of feces can contain 10 million viruses, one million bacteria, 1000 parasite cysts and 100 parasite eggs (footnote 2). Imagine how many children are killed due to this simple equation. A toilet would eliminate these 10 million viruses and parasite eggs, which go on to breed terrible parasites in children and adults. In fact, according to the organization Wateraid, safe disposal of human waste can reduce childhood diarrhea by 40%. Pretty astounding?

Here's another way to look at it. You really have to go, but there are no available facilities. We've all been there. Now, imagine its not a matter of holding for a few more minutes or even hours, but days. In fact, a clean, available facility might never be available. Think about how hard it would be to focus on your classes as a second or seventh grader knowing that your choice is between holding it for six hours, incontinence or a filthy toilet with worms and bugs. You'd probably do what many women and children do, which is develop a habit of avoiding toilets for extremely long periods. This, of course, disrupts the body's natural cycle of eating and disposing and causes dehydration, fissures, urine infection, kidney failure, constipation, incontinence and bladder disease to name a few (Footnote 3).

So, now, just as with recycling I encourage you to take action. Donate a few dollars or even just one to help prevent this atrocity. Think about it- if every person who views this blog donated two dollars to toilets, we could really make a difference.

Some links to donate and or check out are:

1. Articles:
a. Dugger, Celia. Toilets Underused to Fight Disease, U.N. Study Finds. New York Times.
11/10/2006.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/10/world/10toilet.html
b. Practical Action: World Toilet Day: http://practicalaction.org/?id=sanitation

2. I love the Water Aid website (http://www.wateraid.org/uk/get_involved/world_toilet_day/default.asp)
because it gives many practical suggestions besides donating, along with facts about the crises. They also have a Tasteless tie and tacky earrings competition, writing campaign, posters, games (yes- tinkle time and others) and a fantastic four page booklets: http://www.wateraid.org/documents/campaigners_sanitation_pack.pdf

3. For the toilet lovers, you can buy a toilet from Oxfam. Go in with your friends. Buy one in your parents/boss/boyfriend's name for Christmas. Or buy one in my name for Hanukah.
http://www.oxfam.org.uk/shop/ProductDetails.aspx?catalog=Unwrapped&product=OU2648

4. The frugal might want to buy a toilet through World Vision Alternative Gifts. Not as nice,
but does the trick:
http://www.greatgifts.org/GiftCertificateSelection/GiftCertificate.aspx?CertificateID=733&ParentTypeID=2&ParentType=Water

5. Donate to Bio-latrines in Kenya and help keep schools open: http://practicalaction.org/?id=appeal_biolatrines

Footnotes:
1= http://www.globalhealth.org/view_top.php3?id=228
2= http://www.wateraid.org/uk/get_involved/world_toilet_day/default.asp
3= http://www.wordinfo.info/words/index/info/view_unit/3948