Question

How did the silk Road trade Routes help to spread illness?

Answer 1

Hint:
-More products were available in more countries as a result of trade along the Silk Road. Silk became so common in Central Asia because of its soft texture and appealing sheen that it was used as currency.

-However, until the 6th century C.E., the method of growing silkworms and making fabric from their cocoons remained a Chinese secret. Since China was still the only source of silk, trade products continued to fly across Asia. Many individuals and places in the Silk Road trade networks were interested in this.

Complete answer:
i) The Silk Road was a massive trade network that linked Eurasia and North Africa by land and sea.
ii) Chinese silk, a highly valuable product that merchants transported through these trade networks, gave the Silk Road its name.
iii) Trade has increased as a result of technological advancements and increased political stability.
iv) Through the expansion of trade routes, travelers were able to exchange a variety of products, including animals, spices, ideas, and diseases.
v) Wherever humans, livestock, and commodities have travelled and brought enriching results, unwanted phenomena such as disease have also spread widely. Trade and migration have always played a significant role in the spread of infectious disease.
vi) Many viruses have been spread along the Silk Roads, in addition to diseases caused by bacteria, such as the Plague. Smallpox is a well-known example of an infectious disease that has been around for much of human history.
vii) However, just as the disease made its way through the Silk Roads, so did a range of public health programmes intended to prevent it, including an early precursor to vaccines, a procedure known as immunization prophylaxis.
viii) Smallpox became “endemic” (recurring outbreaks within a given population) in the Indian Subcontinent by the 7th century CE, as trade and travel along the Silk Roads increased. Smallpox was distributed across Northern Africa, Spain, and Portugal during this period of Muslim expansion.

Note: Just as the disease itself made its way through the Silk Roads, so did a variety of public health initiatives intended to prevent it, such as “variolation,” an early form of vaccination. Indeed, the first vaccines were created to prevent people from contracting smallpox, which has since been eradicated worldwide thanks to large-scale international vaccination campaigns in the twentieth century.