Diseases that stay
A chronic disease lasts more than 3 months.
A cold goes. Some diseases stay.
A common cold goes away in a short time. But some diseases stay on for a long time, and a doctor gives them a special name.
How long do you think a disease must last to get that name?
What this lesson covers
The idea
Diseases that persist for a long time, more than 3 months, such as cancer, diabetes and asthma, are called chronic diseases.
A cold goes. Some diseases stay.
A common cold goes away in a short time. But some diseases stay on for a long time, and a doctor gives them a special name.
How long do you think a disease must last to get that name?
- A few days
- More than 3 months
- Exactly 1 day
Let the months pass
Press + 1 month and watch how long each disease lasts.
Chronic diseases
Diseases that persist for a long time, more than 3 months, such as cancer, diabetes and asthma, are called chronic diseases.
- Disease | How long it lasts
- Common cold, chickenpox | A short time
- Cancer, diabetes, asthma | More than 3 months: chronic
Notes
Chronic diseases persist for a long time: more than 3 months. Cancer, diabetes and asthma are examples.
Check yourself
How long must a disease last to be called chronic?
Which of these is a chronic disease?
Why are cancer, diabetes and asthma called chronic?
- More than 3 months — correct. Yes. Chronic diseases persist for more than 3 months.
- Less than a week. That is a short time. A chronic disease lasts more than 3 months.
- Exactly 1 day. That is much too short. A chronic disease lasts more than 3 months.
- Diabetes — correct. Yes. It may persist for a long time.
- Common cold. A cold goes away in a short time.
- Chickenpox. Chickenpox lasts a short time.
- They may persist for more than 3 months — correct. Yes. That is what chronic means.
- They spread very quickly. Chronic means lasting a long time, not spreading quickly.
- They are caused by pathogens. Cancer, diabetes and asthma are not caused by pathogens. Chronic is about how long they last.