In general, heavy rain will not directly interfere with digestion in the human body. Digestion mainly occurs in the digestive tract, such as the mouth, esophagus, stomach, intestines, and large intestine. Heavy rain usually only affects the outside of the body and the surrounding environment.
However, extreme weather changes such as heavy rains can affect several aspects of health that may be related to digestion. Some of the possible effects that can occur include:
Water quality: Heavy rains that occur over a long period of time can cause flooding and affect the quality of drinking water. Contaminated water may contain pathogens or chemicals that can cause gastrointestinal infections if consumed.
Contaminated food: Heavy rains can affect food production and storage. If good sanitation is not maintained, contaminated rainwater can contaminate crops, agricultural produce, or food stored in the open. Consumption of this contaminated food can cause digestive disorders such as diarrhea or food poisoning.
Personal hygiene: During heavy rains, there may be limited access to clean water for washing hands and maintaining personal hygiene. This can increase the risk of gastrointestinal infections if germs and pathogens cannot be removed properly.
It is important to maintain good personal hygiene, ensure safe drinking water, and select and store food properly to reduce the risk of digestive upset during heavy rains or other extreme weather conditions.
Rainwater is naturally pure water that is formed from the process of condensing water vapor in the atmosphere and then falls to earth as rain. However, even though rainwater is theoretically clean water, there are several factors to consider before deciding to drink rainwater directly.
Air pollution: Rainwater can be contaminated by air pollution as it collects particles and pollutants as it falls to the earth. This air pollution can come from industrial pollution, motor vehicle emissions, dust, and hazardous chemicals. Therefore, rainwater in urban or industrial areas may contain pollutants that are potentially harmful to health if consumed.
Surface pollutants: Rainwater flowing through roofs, buildings or other surfaces can collect contaminants such as heavy metals, pesticides, household chemicals and bacteria from the surrounding environment. This can cause rainwater to become contaminated and unsafe to drink directly.
If you intend to use rainwater for drinking, it is important to take proper treatment or filtration steps to ensure the water is clean and safe. Some of the methods that can be done include:
Filtration: Use an effective water filtration system to remove dissolved particles and contaminants. This can involve the use of specially designed filters or filtering technologies such as reverse osmosis.
Sterilization: After filtering, ensure that the rainwater is sterile by using methods such as boiling (boiling the water for at least 1-3 minutes) or using chlorine tablets or other disinfectants recommended for drinking water.
Storage: Store treated rainwater in clean, tightly closed containers made of safe materials. Keep the container clean and ensure there is no cross-contamination with other unsafe materials.
While there are ways to treat rainwater to make it safe to drink, it's important to remember that in many cases, tap water or drinking water provided by authorities is considered safer and is subject to strict supervision. If you have any doubts about the cleanliness or quality of rainwater in your area, it is better to choose drinking water sources that have been tested and guaranteed to be safe.