Understanding Waste Management in the Home to Prevent Disease Spread

We often spend a lot of money treating malaria, typhoid, and stomach infections, but we rarely look at where these problems start. Often, the sickness starts right in our backyard or at the corner of our street. When refuse (trash) piles up, or when gutters are blocked with pure water sachets and food scraps, we are essentially creating a nidus for germs.

In Nigeria, proper waste disposal is a huge challenge. In many rural areas, there are no trucks to come and collect the rubbish. In crowded city areas, the designated dumpsites might be overflowing. The result is that many people dump waste in nearby bushes, drainages, or burn it openly.

This blog post from MyCyberClinics is about the direct link between the rubbish in our environment and the health of our families. We will show you simple, low-cost ways to handle waste to stop rats, flies, and mosquitoes from taking over your home, saving you from expensive hospital visits later.

The “Unwanted Guests”: How Trash Brings Disease

Waste doesn’t just sit there; it attracts vectors that carry deadly diseases. When we manage waste poorly, we invite three major enemies into our homes.

1. Rats and Lassa Fever

Lassa fever is a deadly viral hemorrhagic fever that kills many Nigerians every year. The primary carrier is the multimammate rat. These rats are attracted to exposed food waste and garbage piles. If you leave leftover food or uncovered dustbins near your house, you are inviting these rats to feed. When they visit, they leave urine and droppings that contaminate your food and surfaces. According to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), proper environmental sanitation is the most effective way to prevent Lassa fever outbreaks. [https://ncdc.gov.ng/diseases/factsheet/44]

2. Mosquitoes and Malaria

When we throw pure water sachets, empty cans, or broken buckets into the gutter or bush, they catch rain. This creates pockets of stagnant water. This water is the perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes. More trash means more mosquitoes, and more mosquitoes mean more malaria for your family.

3. Flies and Cholera/Typhoid

Houseflies love rotting garbage. They land on the waste, pick up bacteria like Cholera or Typhoid on their legs, and then fly into your kitchen to land on your food. This simple journey from trash to plate is a major cause of diarrhea and stomach infections.

Why Managing Waste is Hard

We know it is not easy to keep a clean environment when the system is struggling.

• Lack of Infrastructure: In many villages, there is no central place to put trash. People have no choice but to create a “dumpsite” behind their house.
• Cost of Disposal: In cities, private waste collectors (PSP) charge monthly fees. For families struggling to buy food, paying to throw away trash feels like a luxury they cannot afford.
• Flooding: When it rains, floodwaters often wash trash from other streets into your compound, bringing other people’s waste and germs to your doorstep.

Simple Actions to Protect Your Home

You do not need a government truck to make your immediate surroundings safer. Here are steps you can take today.

1. The “Cover It Up” Rule (Rat Proofing)

This is the most critical step for preventing Lassa fever.

• Action: Never leave waste in an open bowl or basket. Use a dustbin with a tight-fitting lid. If you cannot afford a plastic bin with a lid, use a heavy stone or wood plank to cover your waste container securely.
• Why: If a rat cannot smell the food, it is less likely to enter your home.

2. Manage Your Drainage

• Action: Check the gutter or drainage channel in front of your house once a week. Remove any plastic bottles or nylon bags that are blocking the flow of water.
• Why: Water that moves does not breed mosquitoes. Stagnant water does. This simple act reduces the malaria risk for your whole street.

3. Separate Your Waste

• Action: Try to keep food scraps (yam peels, leftovers) separate from dry waste (bottles, nylon).
• Why: Food scraps rot and attract flies and rats. Dry waste does not. If you live in a rural area with space, you can bury the food scraps (composting) to enrich the soil, while bagging the dry waste for burning or disposal.

4. Burn Safely (If You Must)

In rural areas where burning is the only option:

• Action: Burn waste far away from the house and windows. Try to avoid burning plastics and rubber (like tires), as the black smoke causes respiratory (chest) problems, especially for children and asthmatics.

When to Seek Help: Using MyCyberClinics

If you notice your environment has been compromised (perhaps you have seen rats or there is a lot of stagnant water) and you start feeling unwell, do not wait.

Step 1: Use the Web or Mobile App

Go to the MyCyberClinics app. You do not need to make a phone call.

Step 2: Tell Chioma Your Context

Our Health assistant, Chioma, is smart. You can tell her, “I have seen rats in my kitchen and now I have a high fever.”

• This context is vital. Chioma will flag this as a potential Lassa fever risk.
• Or you might say, “My compound is flooded with dirty water and I have diarrhea.” Chioma will flag this as a potential Cholera risk.

Step 3: Connect with a Doctor

Chioma will connect you to a licensed doctor on the platform.

• For a suspected Lassa fever case, the doctor will guide you immediately on how to get to a hospital safely for testing, as this is an emergency.
• For Cholera or Malaria, the doctor can prescribe the correct treatment and advise you on hygiene steps to stop the rest of the family from getting sick.

Common Myths About Waste

Myth (What People Say)	Fact (The Truth)
“Rain will wash the trash away.”	Fact: Rain only moves trash to the nearest blockage (gutter), causing floods and stagnant water that breed malaria mosquitoes.
“Burning plastic destroys the germs.”	Fact: Burning plastic releases toxic chemicals into the air that can cause coughing, asthma attacks, and long-term lung damage.
“Lassa fever is only in the bush.”	Fact: Lassa fever enters the city when rats find food sources like open garbage piles near homes.

Practical Takeaways: What You Can Do Today

1. Check Your Bin: Go look at your dustbin right now. Does it have a lid? If not, find something to cover it tightly.
2. Clear One Block: Spend 10 minutes clearing any plastic blocking the water flow in the gutter directly in front of your door.
3. Download the App: Ensure you have the MyCyberClinics mobile app ready. If a fever starts after you have been cleaning a dirty area, you need to talk to Chioma quickly to rule out serious infections.
4. Wash Hands After Disposal: Always wash your hands with soap immediately after throwing out the trash.

Your health starts with your environment. By keeping your waste covered and your drains clear, you are building a wall against disease.

Do not let a dirty environment cost you your health. If you suspect you have an infection caused by contaminated food or water, log in to the MyCyberClinics web or mobile app today. Let Chioma analyze your symptoms and connect you with a doctor who understands your needs.