Trenches are often infested with rats and lice. Soldiers would occupy trenches for weeks at a time. Life in the trenches included many long periods of combat. Soldiers in the trenches were in constant threat of artillery shots, machine gun fire, snipers, and charging soldiers. Trenches offered some protection from poison gas because it gave soldiers time to put their masks on (Dunleavy). Trench warfare took the lives of millions of soldiers on both the allied and axis sides. Many soldiers contracted diseases because of poor hygiene and the conditions of the trenches. Disease is a common occurrence and couldn’t be dealt with due to the lack of medicine and treatment methods. The most common diseases include, trench foot, trench mouth, trench fever, dysentery, typhoid fever, and influenza. Trench foot occurs because soldiers have constantly wet feet (Dunleavy). It is a painful condition in which dead tissue spreads across one or both feet. Trench mouth, also known as ulcerative gingivitis, is painful gum ulcers and swelling (Rish). This is caused by stress and poor oral hygiene. Trench fever is spread by lice and it causes fever, headaches, and muscle pain
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