WHO will double the cholera vaccine supply in 2016, according to a new report released on Friday. Last year, two manufacturers supplied 3 million doses of vaccine, and this year a third producer will join them, and the cholera vaccine supplies will reach 6 million.

EuBiologics is WHO’s new vaccine producer and was required because the nations continue to face major deadly outbreaks. According to Who, the addition of the South Korean company will help lower the high prices of the vaccines and will meet the high demand that is currently on the market. Last year, the World Health Organization had to turn down the vaccine requests of Haiti and Sudan, because of the high demands.The humanitarian crises will be helped by WHO, according to whom the rainy season brings with it many new cases of cholera. The disease can be found in more than 50 countries around the world. Every year, between 1 million and 4 million cases of cholera are being reported, of which approximately 140,000 lead to death.

Cholera is the infection of the small intestine by the Vibrio cholera bacteria. While some people don’t show any symptoms, others can experience watery diarrhea, vomiting, muscle cramps, and dehydration. When the diarrhea is severe it can lead to the skin turning blue, decreased skin elasticity, cold skin, sunken eyes and wrinkling of the feet and hands. After the exposure, the symptoms can appear varying from a few hours to a few days.

The disease is mostly spread by the water that has been contaminated with feces containing the bacteria. When the seafood is not cooked long enough, the disease can appear. Other factors that increase the risks of cholera are poverty, poor sanitation and the dirty drinking water.

Experts believe that if the sea levels will increase, the rates of cholera will increase as well. The climate changes like drought and flooding brought by El Niño also contribute to the new cases of cholera.

In order to avoid the cholera infections, people are advised to drink water only if it is bottled or after it has been boiled. The food is recommended to be either packaged, either eaten after it has been freshly cooked. Experts advise against eating undercooked meat or seafood. The fruits and vegetables are advised to be eaten only after they have been peeled. People are also advised to wash their hands as frequently as possible. These recommendations go for the people who live in areas that are at high risk of cholera outbreaks. As WHO will double the cholera vaccine supply in 2016, the cholera outbreaks are expected to decrease and to be managed quicker than in the past.

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