Disease is something that eventually strikes all of us and unfortunately, there is no real way to get rid of it even with all of the modern technology that we have nowadays. We use technology to temporarily get rid of diseases, but they keep on coming back because there are so many diseases that it is impossible for us to keep them all away.
Our body might have natural defenses, but these often prove to not be enough in keeping us away from stronger diseases that end up claiming the lives of innocent people a lot of times. One of these diseases is pneumonia.
Pneumonia is ,essentially, an infection that affects the lungs of the individual, causing the inflammation of the air sacs located within the lungs (alveoli). These end up filling up with pus or fluid which will make it hard for the individual to breathe – since these have liquid and not air in them.
Pneumonia is caused by either bacteria, viruses or fungi and its symptoms can go from a wide range of them. Some of these symptoms can be pretty mild, while others can even threaten to take the life of the individual if no particular action is taken. Unfortunately, pneumonia is currently the disease that causes more deaths on a global scale, and efforts to stop it are yet to succeed completely.
There is, however, more than one single type of pneumonia. There are three, but in this article we are going to discuss two of them: bacterial pneumonia and viral pneumonia. These are different form one another, and we are looking at the differences:
Bacterial Pneumonia
Bacterial pneumonia doesn’t discriminate, it can pretty much affect anyone at any age, and if that wasn’t bad enough, it has the ability to develop on its own, without the need for prior illness. It can, however, develop from a serious flu, as well as in people with immune weak systems, such as people fighting cancer or aids.
Viral Pneumonia
Viral pneumonia is, in most cases, caused by respiratory viruses that lurk around, and the people who are at higher risk are young children and the elderly due to the weakness and underdevelopment of their immune systems. It is usually not too serious and doesn’t last very long but, in some cases, it can prove to be fatal. Individuals with problems in the lung and in the heart are at a special risk of fighting fatal pneumonia.
As such, it is clear that you want to avoid at all costs catching pneumonia ( or any other disease for that matter, the best is to boost up your immune system through regular exercise and a healthy diet in order to make sure your body is protected.