A sewage backup is no laughing matter. Even a minor backup can lead to major damage to your business or home, and the longer it lasts, the worse things get. Beyond damaging the building itself, these backups can expose you, your coworkers, your employees, or your family to raw sewage. That, in turn, can have major adverse effects on health, including various diseases and even death if not properly addressed. In this article, we’ll take a look at the biggest risks associated with sewage backups.
Exposure
The thing that first comes to mind when most people imagine a sewage backup is the disgusting smell. In reality, though, that odor is just a warning sign for the much more intense negative effects that can result from being exposed to raw sewage.
Sewage is swimming with a whole host of viruses, bacteria, and parasites. Even the slightest bit of exposure can lead to diseases or other long-term health problems. Here are some of the ways you could be exposed to sewage during a backup and the common results of that exposure:
*Contact: If you touch sewage or water that has some sewage contamination, you may get infections or rashes.
*Ingesting: Sound gross? Yeah, it is, but there are scenarios where you could accidentally swallow sewage, whether directly or via contaminated water. If this happens, you’ll likely experience vomiting, diarrhea, and other forms of abdominal pain and nausea.
*Inhalation: While you probably won’t get sewage into your lungs, a backup can lead to the growth of mold. One that happens, spores from the mold will be in the air and can easily be breathed in without even realizing it. Mold spores can cause a number of problems once they’re in your lungs, from respiratory infections to major allergic reactions.
Diseases Caused By Sewage Contact
If some of the side effects we’ve listed so far sound relatively minor, don’t be fooled. Exposure to raw sewage can lead to extremely dangerous health problems, in some cases even life-threatening issues.
While you could just end up with a stomach sickness, sewage contamination could also lead to long-lasting diseases that hospitalize you or worse. Here is a list of some of the diseases that often show up after sewage exposure:
*Cryptosporidiosis – This waterborne disease is carried by a parasite that’s invisible to the naked eye. It causes diarrhea, cramps, and fever, and it’s extremely common in the U.S.
*Campylobacteriosis – Another extremely common disease, campylobacteriosis is known primarily for causing powerful diarrhea, as well as nausea, fever, and abdominal pains.
*Gastroenteritis – You’ve probably heard of this one under its mainstream name: the stomach flu. Gastroenteritis is a virus that causes diarrhea, headaches, vomiting, abdominal cramps, and fever. Worse of all, it can last upwards of 10 long days.
*E. Coli – Most people know about the risk of getting E. coli through raw or undercooked meat, but it can actually be transmitted through the water as well. E. coli comes with a number of symptoms, including nausea, diarrhea, abdominal cramps, and vomiting, but it can actually get much worse. Bad cases of E. coli can lead to complete kidney failure and death if not treated.
*Hepatitis A – Hepatitis A is transmitted via stool from other infected people, which is how it can get passed on through contact to sewage. This virus leads to fever, nausea, diarrhea, fatigue, loss of appetite, and jaundice. Generally, hepatitis A will take care of itself over the course of two to three months, but in some cases, it can last as long as nine months.
*Giardiasis – This is another disease carried by a parasite. Like campylobacteriosis, its most common symptoms are abdominal cramps, diarrhea, and a generally upset stomach.
This is only a sample of the diseases that can be spread through contact with raw sewage. Other less frequent diseases include Poliomyelitis, Shigellosis, Salmonellosis, Typhoid Fever, and Leptospirosis.
Each one of these is very serious and can cause extreme health problems. For example, Typhoid Fever, Salmonellosis, and Leptospirosis can all be a direct contributing factor to death if not properly treated. Poliomyelitis regularly leads to complete paralysis. Each disease is very serious; if you have had any exposure to raw sewage, you should see a doctor as soon as possible.
