Humans and Livestock in Kenya are Intrinsically Linked with Their Health

Humans and livestock in Kenya are intrinsically linked. Scientists have found that there's a connection between the health of farmers and their families to their livestock.

In this latest study, the scientists tracked 1,500 households and their livestock in 10 western Kenyan villages for one year. This revealed a strong relationship between the number of illnesses among family members and the number of livestock sicknesses and deaths in the same household.

The researchers used house-to-house visits and free hotline numbers for farmers to call on mobile phones. This allowed the scientists to obtain data on 6,400 adults and children, along with more than 8,000 cattle, 2,400 goats, 1,300 sheep and 18,000 chickens.

The researchers found that for every 10 cases of animal illness or death that occurred, the probability of human sickness in the same household shot up by 31 percent.

"Our findings help to understanding in quantitative terms, the complex pathways that link livestock health to the health and welfare of the humans who own them," said Thumbi Mwangi, a Kenya-based lead author in a news release. "It's important because an estimated 300 million people living in sub-Saharan Africa depend on their livestock as a main source of livelihood and nutrition."

In the end, researchers found that human health and animal health are connected by three pathways: socio-economic, where healthy livestock result in higher household incomes; nutritional, where healthy livestock increase access to animal food sources; and zoonotic, where healthy livestock are less likely to transmit diseases.

The findings reveal a bit more about the connection between people and livestock. This, in turn, is important to note in areas where people depend on livestock for their livelihoods and their well-being.

The findings are published in the journal PLOS One.

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