G-H
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G-H (Cruiser's Dictionary)
G
GASOIL - See "Diesel"
GASOLINE - Called "Petrol" where British influence.
GIARDIA - Parasite found in fresh-water streams into which local sewage is dumped. Although infection is usually without symptoms, sometimes it is manifested by such intestinal symptoms as chronic diarrhea, abdominal cramps, bloating, frequent loose and pale greasy stools, fatigue and weight loss.
Water from such sources must be heated to 131 degrees Fahrenheit, 55 degrees Celsius , or passed through a filter of no greater than one micron - chemical treatment is less reliable.
Chemical treatment: 0.1 to 0.2 ml (2 to 4 drops) household bleach or 0.5 ml of 2% tincture of iodine per liter of water, let stand for 20 minutes (longer if water is cold or turbid) [ ref.: CC DISEASES]. Do not swim in fresh-water streams in the Caribbean islands - almost all are infested with Giardia. (See "Intestinal infections/parasites”). In all cases, 1.0 micron filter will remove cysts - Amebic dysentery, Cryptosporidium, Giardia. Chlorine treatment unreliable, iodine a bit better. See above.
H
HAM RADIO - See "Shortwave Radio"
HEADS - Calcium precipitating out of salt water will build up in waste line, eventually clogging it. Daily squirt of vinegar left in head overnight will slow this process. We tried putting a little oil in the head every few days as was suggested by some cruisers - we found significant calcium buildup after six months, so have gone back to the vinegar treatment. Clearing head and lines of calcium, you can use phosphoric acid or dilute muriatic (hydrochloric) acid, but be very, very careful.
Our procedure: jammed a plastic hose into the outlet through-hull to bring outlet above sea level, flushed dilute muriatic acid through with fresh water, and let it sit in the line for about an hour, then flushed through after removing the hose. It is very satisfying to see all the junk that flushes out. (see "Acids")
HEPATITIS - It is worthwhile to be immunized against hepatitis, both strains A and B. They are becoming a menace just about everywhere in the world. (We have recently read reports in Australia of people contracting Hepatitis B through contact with contaminated eating utensils and dishes, which we had previously been told was highly unlikely). The new Hepatitis A vaccine (as a course 2-4 weeks apart) gives long term protection, doing away with repeated gamma globulin injections. Booster at 6 or 12 months. (See the Medical College of Wisconsin website: )
HOSE CLAMPS - See “Rust”
HOSPITALS - If you need medical care outside of Western Europe, US, Australia, NZ, we strongly urge that you do not go to the local hospital. In major towns and cities find the private clinic that treats the well-to-do (applies to every South American country, every Caribbean island, and most Pacific islands). If you can find it, read a book called "Sitting Ducks" (see "Books").
HYDROFLUORIC ACID - In weak solution, a rust stain remover for clothing. Sold in US in hardware stores, in Australia in pharmacies when available. Be very careful when using it and wear rubber gloves - it does not burn the skin, but will go through the skin and burn the nerves. Used carefully it's great stuff, but it requires more care than other acids because its burning effects are not so obvious. It also etches glass, so don't put in a glass or glazed china container.
HYPODERMIC NEEDLES - Warning about unsafe hypodermic injections. Please be alert, and make sure that the injection you receive in some out-of-the-way place is done with a new disposable needle. You might want to take your own with you when you go to a hospital for emergency medical treatment.
- See the following:-
- “In the Far East, South Asia, Africa and parts of Eastern Europe, unsafe injections cause between 10 and 20 million hepatitis B and C infections every year. The 20-year time lag between infection and terminal liver disease means that the true cost of dirty needles is only emerging now. Children are particularly vulnerable: around 80 per cent infected with hepatitis B can't shake off the virus, and 20 per cent will eventually die from liver disease.
- In the Pakistani city of Karachi, dozens of unqualified health workers sell sick people "curative" injections. "These places have to be seen to be believed," says Hutin. The injections are usually worthless as well as passing on viral infections, says epidemiologist Arshad Altaf of the Aga Khan University in Karachi. "Formal and informal healthcare advisers are in the habit of providing unnecessary injections. Usually they're just water and vitamins. Sometimes they contain antibiotics."
- "If we don't control this, I think the problem will increase tenfold in the next 10 years. There's a dearth of data, but what we have suggests that between 2.5 to 10 per cent of the population have hepatitis B or C. The situation will be horrendous. Hospitals are already seeing a big rise in people with liver disease."
- "If you look at hospitals in Europe and, I suspect, around the world, more and more people are coming down with end-stage liver disease,’ says Steve Luby, of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, who spent five years in Pakistan studying the problem.
Excerpted from New Scientist magazine, 21 October 2000.
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