What is Malaria?
Malaria is an infectious disease caused by a parasite that infects red blood cells. It is carried by mosquitoes and transmitted when that mosquito bites the skin of a human. It is preventable and treatable. Signs of malaria are similar to that of the flu. People with severe cases of malaria suffer from kidney failure, bleeding problems, comas, and eventually death. Malaria amplifies the severity of other diseases such as HIV and Tuberculosis.
- About 500 million people become severely ill with the malaria every year
- About 1 million die every year because of the disease.
- In Africa, one out of every five childhood deaths is due to the effects of malaria.
- Malaria is the leading cause of childhood deaths in Africa.
- Approximately 3000 deaths due to malaria each day.
- A child dies of malaria every 30 seconds.