What is famine? What is it's …

The literal meaning of famine is “extreme inadequacy and the scarcity of food.” Famine is the phenomenon which occurs in a vast terrestrial area due to various environmental and biological reasons. Some of the prime reasons are population imbalance, scarcity of water or lack of rainfall, population imbalance, crop failure, government policies.

Effects of Famines

Starvation is nothing but biological consequences of continuous scarcity of food. During the famine, starvation occurs on a mass scale.

Various diseases occur in the human body during the famine like Cholera. It is caused by bacteria, Vibrio cholerae, which leads an increased amount of water to be increased from cells that line the intestines. Symptoms include watery diarrhea, abdominal cramps, dry, mucous membranes, mouth, and skin, excessive thirst and lethargy. 

Dropsy, which is now referred as edema is caused due to excessive fluid under the skin, the body swells. The affected area often retains a dimple after being pressed for few seconds. 

Dysentery is another condition which affects the human body, where a bacterial infection is spread by water, stool, and food. Poor sanitation, contaminated food and water and crowded living conditions lead to dysentery. Symptoms include blood in stool, abdominal pain, diarrhea, and fever.

Another notable condition is anemia. There can be a lot more diseases that are caused due to famines. Apart from diseases, famines also cause lower fertility rates, poor living conditions, fewer income options, various socio-political issues, etc.