BEWARE Brain-Eating Microorganisms are a real threat in warm water lakes and ponds in the southern US States: If you swim in warm water/low level lakes and ponds (like I do) BEWARE. Hold your nose shut or use nose clips while swimming. Avoid stirring up the sediment while wading in shallow, warm freshwater areas. If you are irrigating, flushing or rinsing your sinuses (for example, by using a neti pot), use water that has been distilled or sterilized. CNN reports the death of a 4-year-old boy has been blamed on the rare single-celled animal. Tests conclude the St. Bernard Parish water supply contains ‘Naegleria fowleri,’ which is found in hot springs and other warm fresh water, most often in the southwest U.S. The Louisiana parish’s water is safe to drink, but getting water in the nose may allow the amoeba to travel to the brain where it begins eating. Less than 1 percent of patients survive the infection. Chlorine kills the amoeba, but apparently the Louisiana water system had let chlorine levels dip too low. I was reading the Wikipedia entry on amoebas and was startled to read that they are “organisms that yolo all over the place.” Someone needs to fix that. In 2003, two children died after contracting the amoeba in the only other public drinking water case ever reported in the U.S.
Posted on: Sun, 15 Sep 2013 19:53:21 +0000
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