Access to healthy water

More than 3.4 million people die each year from water, sanitation, and hygiene-related causes; unhealthy water mostly affects infants and young children.  This topic is very meaningful to me because access to healthy water is the most basic human need, it is a necessity for a healthy life. 780 million people lack access to clean water, mostly in third world countries (World Health Organization, 2008). 

According to UNICEF, lack of clean water leads to diseases and death of more than 1.6 million young children each year. Lack of separate and decent sanitation facilities at schools often forces girls to drop out of primary school; therefore most girls in developing countries are not educated (2003), this affects the future generations.  In Africa, women have to spend several hours each day finding a clean source and transporting heavy containers of water. Without clean water, they cannot grow food, so they cannot stay healthy. Due to the lack of proper health condition, nutrition and education, children cannot develop in a healthy way.

It is sad to see that so many people in Africa don't have access to clean water and suffer from various diseases; the average American uses 176 gallons of water per day compared to 5 gallons of water the average African family uses each day (www.water.org).  Water in third world countries is also much more expensive that water in developed countries; this also decreases the access to clean water in poor families.

Childbirth in my life and around the world

            Last year I attended the birth of my niece, my mother was also there to support my sister and her husband was there as well.  It was a very stressful experience for me because my sister was in labor for around 24 hours.  She was in a lot of pain and the doctor couldn't give her the epidural until her baby was ready to be born.  Her fever went up while she was giving birth and the doctors had to give her antibiotics, which meant that her baby also had to take them.  The doctors had to keep the baby in the ICU for observation for her first 24 hours, this really affected my sister because she needed that time to bond with her baby.  She also had complications because of the epidural, which also had a negative effect on her emotional state.
            Women in Japan traditionally give birth without any painkillers, this is related to the Buddhist perception of suffering.  They are accompanied by their mother; their husband doesn't usually attend the birth, the doctor and a nurse.  According to the Japanese culture, women bring shame to their family if they are loud during labor, so they are expected to be very quiet.  The umbilical cord of the new born is usually kept in a box.  After the birth of their child, new mothers stay at their parents' home where it is a tradition to stay in bed with the baby for 21 days.  
            Compared to births in the US, births in Japan don’t seem that different; however I believe that the husband should be present during the birth of his child to support his wife and to witness what should be the most memorable moment of his life.  Since my sister had complications because of the epidural, I am not sure whether it is a good idea to ask for it.  I think that it is important for the new mother to stay at her parents' home for a few days after giving birth, it gives her a chance to rest and bond with her child; all new mothers need that time to recover and get used to their new life routine.