The salinity intrusion into fresh groundwater is a serious problem in coastal regions of Bangladesh. It has both direct and indirect effects on human well-being. This study was carried out in two coastal villages of south-eastern part of Bangladesh with the aim of examining peoples’ perception of the water salinity impacts on human health. Data were collected from randomly selected 153 semistructured household interviews, 10 key-informant interviews and two group discussions. The water salinity was measured for shallow tube-well (STW) and pond in three distinct seasons. The mean water salinity of STW varied from 5.11 to 6.48 dS/m, while pond water salinity level was in the range of 0.11–3.12 dS/m. The salinity level varied depending on depth of tube-well and distance from the sea. Due to the use of saline water, villagers suffered from several diseases including skin diseases, hair loss, diarrhea, gastric and high blood pressure. In one village high salinity restricted villagers to practice agriculture on limited agricultural land. Increasing salinity due to adverse climatic conditions in coastal areas would pose a serious threat on household water supplies. Suggestions are made to improve the management of fresh surface water and groundwater resources in salt-affected areas and to explore rainwater harvesting as a sustainable solution.

中文翻译：

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人们对水盐度对人体健康的影响的感知：以孟加拉国东南沿海地区为例

在孟加拉国沿海地区，盐分侵入淡水是一个严重的问题。它对人类的福祉有直接和间接的影响。这项研究是在孟加拉国东南部的两个沿海村庄进行的，目的是检验人们对水盐度对人类健康影响的认识。从随机选择的153个半结构化家庭访谈，10个关键信息访谈和两个小组讨论中收集数据。在三个不同的季节中，对浅管井（STW）和池塘的水盐度进行了测量。STW的平均水盐度在5.11至6.48 dS / m之间，而池塘水盐度水平在0.11-3.12 dS / m范围内。盐度水平根据管井深度和距海的距离而变化。由于使用了盐水，村民患有多种疾病，包括皮肤疾病，脱发，腹泻，胃和高血压。在一个村庄，高盐度限制了村民在有限的耕地上从事农业。由于沿海地区不利的气候条件导致盐度增加，将对家庭供水构成严重威胁。提出了一些建议，以改善对盐灾地区的新鲜地表水和地下水资源的管理，并探索将雨水收集作为一种可持续的解决方案。