300,000 children 'at risk of disease' in wake of Bangladesh cyclone

Up to 300,000 Bangladeshi children aged under five are still at the risk of disease in the wake of Cyclone Sidr, which hit the country in mid-November, according to a leading aid agency.

The children are living in makeshift camps and surviving on minimal amounts of food and water, while they also lack access to basic amenities or proper shelter, warned the United Nations' children's fund, UNICEF.

As a result the organisation highlighted the increased risk they face of diseases such as diarrhoea, respiratory infection and other cold-related conditions.

"Children often bear the greatest brunt of natural disasters, needing the greatest assistance and care," explained the UNICEF representative in Bangladesh, Louis-Georges Arsenault.

"Food alone is not enough to alleviate the disease burden. If they are not fed micronutrients quickly and are not protected by vitamins and iron, and if diarrhoeal diseases spread, they will die," he added.

Cyclone Sidr killed more than 3,000 people when it struck, with millions left homeless in it's wake, the BBC reported.

News brought to you by Global Health TV, covering the issues of Health in the Developing world.