![\"Germs\"](\"https:\/\/littlemedicalschool.com\/ottawa\/files\/2022\/04\/Image-18-1-Copy-300x292-1.jpg\" "\\"Different")
<\/strong><\/p>\n Germs<\/strong> are teeny tiny particles that are everywhere and when they enter your body, they can make you sick. They are parts of an army that you can\u2019t see with open eyes. The scientific name\u00a0for germs is \u201cpathogen<\/strong>\u201d. An illness caused by pathogens\u00a0is called an infectious disease<\/strong> and is only seen with a microscope.<\/p>\n \u201cI know that germs will make me sick, but I am so tired of washing my hands every time I come in!\u201d – my 5 years old said furiously.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Pathogens are very, very small organisms (called microorganisms) that invade the body and make it sick. Examples of pathogens are viruses, bacteria, parasites, and fungi. Pathogens are also called microbes or microorganisms that attack our bodies and make us sick.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Germs are everywhere: they can float through the air, survive in water, on doors knobs, on tables, on toilets, and even your skin. They\u00a0fly in the air when you sneeze or cough and wait to infect other humans. The germs will land on their food, hands, or will be breathed in like air, this is how they make you sick.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n We are small particles visible only with a microscope. We\u00a0could not live if we did not enter a plant or the body of a human or animal we call the \u201chost<\/strong>\u201d. A protein coat or\u00a0CAPSID\u00a0<\/strong>make up my protective shell.<\/strong> Inside I am made of Nucleic Acid<\/a>, <\/strong>a core of genetic material, either RNA or DNA. When I enter a host, and at a cellular level, I throw my shell away and inject my nucleic acid inside the cell-manufacturing factory. I do magic and force the body cell to make copies of me. The body releases those copies to attack different cells. This is how I make your body sick.<\/p>\n Example of viruses are: common cold, influenza, chickenpox, measles, mumps, yellow fever, hepatitis and Coronavirus<\/p>\n I can pass from one person to another by shaking hands, touching food, through water, or through the air when a person coughs or sneezes.<\/p>\n I can also pass on by insect bites, animals, or through bad food.\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n We are microbes (small particles) and we are only visible with a microscope. Don’t call me pathogen because most of us are not dangerous and are actually helpful. I play an important role in the planet\u2019s ecosystem as well as in human survival. I am everywhere; in the air, on your skin, in your bodies, in the ground, and all throughout nature. In the soil, I help break down material from dead plants and animals and, I also help to fertilize the soil with nitrogen for plants to use when growing.<\/p>\n I am available in food, like yogurt, cheese, pickles, and soy sauce. I live inside your body and help in the digestion. Some of us can also help your immune system.<\/p>\n Yes! A few of us are bad and can cause diseases such as tuberculosis, cholera, typhoid fever, and tetanus. When we enter a host, we frustrate the immune system and damage the body cells. Our\u00a0goal in life is to double and to keep doubling and doubling. This way we keep increasing and this is how we make you sick!<\/p>\nWhat are the pathogens?<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n
How can germs make us sick?<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n
Let\u2019s meet the Virus<\/span> <\/strong><\/h4>\n
Let\u2019s meet the Bacteria<\/span>
![\"Bacteria](\"https:\/\/littlemedicalschool.com\/ottawa\/files\/2022\/04\/Image-16-1-Copy-300x274-1.jpg\" "\\"This")
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