Optical spectroscopy of drinking water quality and gastrointestinal disease risk in rural communities of Jizzakh Region
Abstract
Safe drinking water is essential for preventing gastrointestinal disease, yet rural households in the Jizzakh Region continue to rely on small piped schemes and private wells with limited monitoring. This study investigates whether portable optical spectroscopy of drinking water can provide early warning of microbiological contamination and associated gastrointestinal disease risk in dispersed rural communities. A cross sectional and short term longitudinal design was implemented in four villages, combining field measurements of absorbance and fluorescence signatures with laboratory confirmation of indicator microorganisms and routinely collected primary care morbidity data. Spectral indices were converted into a composite optical risk score and related to community level incidence of acute gastrointestinal disease in children and adults. The findings show that simple optical signatures are strongly correlated with faecal contamination patterns and that elevated optical risk scores anticipate seasonal peaks of gastrointestinal disease, supporting integration of spectroscopy into low cost rural water safety management.