There are so many kinds of diseases around the world. Some of them are known to us while there are still many others that we do not know of. You may come across some of these when you read the newspapers, some health magazines or even browse the internet. Some of them can be cured with some kinds of medicines and some cannot. Most of these may not even be known to mankind. The symptoms and causes make you wonder at the abnormalities caused by such weird and mystery diseases. Here are 10 strange diseases seen in humans.
1. Morgellons
According to the Morgellons Research Foundation, more than 14,000 people suffer from this disease. They have biting, crawling and stinging sensations on their body with the emergence of strange black, blue and red fibers on the skin. The symptoms also include short term memory loss, exhaustion, changes in vision and joint pain. The name of the disease was given by a woman who believed that her son was suffering from this strange disease.
2. Progeria
Progeria is caused due to damage or defect in the fetus. People suffering from this disease have a peculiar look of premature aging and may die at an average age of 13. Profound growth delays start between the ages of 9 and 24 months. This leads to disproportionate facial features, prominent and bulging eyes and underdeveloped jaw. At the age of two hairs from the eyelashes, scalp and eyebrows are lost. The patients finally begin to lose all the fat stored under their skin leading to stroke in most of them.
3. Water allergy
This disease has affected only about 30 people in the world and is extremely rare. People who suffer from this disease are allergic to water. This condition often occurs very late in life and is due to hormonal imbalance at birth. A 21-year-old lady developed this disease and was able to drink only diet coke and take a shower once a week just for 10 seconds. When her skin touches water she developed a painful and burning rash.
4. Foreign accent syndrome
Such people are usually seen talking in an unrecognizable accent or dialect. About 60 such cases have been reported. Initially, the doctors dismissed it a psychiatric problem. But all the people who suffered the disease had the same brain abnormalities. The suffers were mostly not exposed to the new dialect they spoke.
5. Laughing death
This disease is more commonly known as kuru and was seen among the tribal people of New Guinea. The condition is characterized by sudden bursts of monstrous laughter. The disease was first reported in the 50s. People suffering from the disorder had shaking limbs. After about a month they would sway, stumble, lose the power to stand, speak and finally die. Tests on the deceases showed that the death was caused by holes in the brain called as Swiss-cheesing.
6. Fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva
This is a rare disease that affects very few people. It is a condition in which the tendons and ligaments get transformed into bone making it very difficult to move the body. It is congenital and is characterized by the malformation of the toe at birth. A five-year old boy who suffered from this disease died after his whole body stiffened up. He was able to move only his lips.
7. Alice in Wonderland syndrome
Suffers of this syndrome perceive all the objects they see as tiny. This is also known as Lilliput sight or micropsia. The disease is associated with headaches also. This is named after the famous Alice in Wonderland novel because the suffers also had some bizarre experiences like Alice.
8. Porphyria
People suffering from this disease have purple feces and urine. It also leads to complications in producing ‘heme’. It affects the nervous system and the skin. Suffers may also have to go through stomach cramps, abdominal pain, vomiting, nausea and constipation. Other symptoms include itching, sensitivity to sun, swelling and increased hair growth on forehead.
9. Pica
One who suffers from pica eats anything. The patients develop an appetite for almost anything including clay, paint, dirt and various other things. If the person keeps eating things for more than a month only then it can be considered as pica. Researchers feel that this disorder is due to mineral deficiency. However, the real cause of the syndrome is not yet known.
10. Moebius syndrome
It is a genetic and rare case that is characterized by facial paralysis. People suffering from this disease cannot close their eyes, make facial expression, look from one side to another and have limb abnormalities also. The cases are mostly isolated without any family history. The suffers have also known to live long.
