What’s Really Going on Inside Your Body

You’re freezing, but then hot. You throat is so dry, you’ve drank 5 bottles of water in a hour; and the worst part? It’s the weekend, and thanks to this sickness you have, your weekend plans are ruined. You know you’ve been in this situation one time or another. But how did this happen? This was caused by a virus! Did you know that viruses are so small; you can only see them with an ultra-strong microscope (Carr)? This helps viruses get into your healthy cells and make you sick. These viruses are very harmful to your body and are in your body all the time, 24/7; however, viruses may not always be the cause of your sickness.

To begin with, you probably asking yourself; what is a virus? Well, a virus is a nonliving microscopic organism that causes disease and is contagious(Mifflin). Viruses can enter our body in many ways. They can enter through the mouth, nose, or a break in your skin (Carr).  Although, viruses are much smaller than any regular cell (Carr). Viruses take advantage of cells once they get into them. It is a complicated process for a virus to get into a cell. Viruses form from going into healthy cells and injecting the virus in that cell (Carr). It then begins to multiply (Carr). The DNA in a virus makes the cell give the virus the proteins it needs to live (Carr). As you can see, the virus manipulates the cell by doing this. The cell has no power once the virus gets into it. This is also how viruses affect organisms. The virus infects the organisms in the cell to make the cell sick. When the virus takes over a cell, white blood cells come to destroy the infected cell (Howard).

Now that you know what a virus is, you should know that even though they are mostly dangerous viruses, there are some helpful viruses. For instance, viruses can bring the correct genes to cells in humans (Jr.). Doctors use this process when a human’s cells aren’t working properly, but not because of a virus (Jr.). The virus helps the cell by bringing the acceptable genes (Jr.). There is also another way viruses can be helpful. Doctors sometimes insert viruses into you to kill bad bacteria inside your body (Jr.). They kill the bad bacteria so you won’t get sick. This sickness did not come from a virus. If it did, the doctors would be smart and not insert another virus into you (Jr.).

Now that you know more about the good viruses in your body, you should know how most of the viruses are harmful. Viruses are very harmful. They make you sick and infect tissue in your body which causes specific organs to not work correctly (brown). Like I said before, they also go into your cells and cause your cells to die. All this causes to your body to get very ill and not work correctly (brown). You start having no energy at all, and then you can’t eat (brown). Some viruses cause you to get a really horrifying cough. This affects your body because coughing a lot dries your throat. Drinking lots of water helps while having a virus.

I know what you’re thinking; “who cares about this? I will never get a virus”. Well, that is incorrect. There are two very common viruses adults and children get easily. Chicken pox is one of them. You have probably seen chicken pox on movies and shows but they don’t really show what happens in your body. If you never seen chicken pox however, you’re probably wondering what it is. Chicken pox is a contagious infection that forms red itchy blisters all over the body (A.D.A.M).It is mostly found in kids 3-12 years of age (A.D.A.M). This is caused by a very harmful virus, the worst there is. All viruses are contagious; you know that, but this one spreads before the victim even knows it (A.D.A.M). People with chicken pox are contagious even before the blisters start forming (A.D.A.M). As a result, the victim doesn’t even know he/she is sick yet, until the blisters start coming (A.D.A.M).  They stay that way until all the blisters have scabbed or crusted over (A.D.A.M). But now, let’s talk about how you get it from someone else. You can get chickenpox by someone who has it, sneezing or coughing on you (A.D.A.M). I would stay away from them! Also, if the solution in the chickenpox blister gets on the skin, you can get chickenpox also (A.D.A.M). These things all make chickenpox very contagious (A.D.A.M). But, you may think, there must be a way to cure this! You’re right, there is. The chicken pox vaccine is the only way chicken pox can be cured. It has helped tons of people in sickness to avoid getting this disease a gain (Varicella (Chickenpox) Vaccination ).

Another type of a harmful virus is the measles. Measles is a contagious virus that is easily spread to others (Measles). It is an illness caused by a virus in the human’s body (Measles). This illness is most likely found in adults, very rare in kids.  After you get measles, the systems start beginning eight to twelve  days after so you don’t notice any change right away (Measles). When you get measles although, you get a horrible, itchy, red, rash that spreads all across your body (Measles). You although have the normal symptoms (cough, fever, pain) so at first it seems like just a flu but in reality it’s not (Measles). Having measles is very painful and it continues for a long time, however, like chicken pox, there is a way to cure it and avoid it. To avoid measles, you can get vaccinated for it (Measles). After you have been vaccinated a few times, it’s likely you won’t get it (Measles).  Also, if you get the measles, you can also get vaccinated for it, but it just takes longer to heal (Measles). If I was you, I would play it safe and get the measles vaccination!

In conclusion, viruses are harmful organisms that affect your body dramatically. As you have learned, viruses are dangerous for the most part, but sometimes can be good. Measles and chicken pox are common viruses that can cause lots of damage to your body. Something you can take from this is to always wash your hands and try as hard as you can to not get sick! You never know if you have a really horrible virus!