Be careful where you are swimming this summer

THat shimmering swimming hole can look on a sizzling day – and feel – felt. But writhing with pain of stomach cramps, nausea and vomiting? Staring to the ceiling of the bathroom instead of the blue, sunny sky? Not so much.

Jumping in even the most beautiful and clearest rivers, lakes, creeks and other natural water bodies can expose you to a cesspool of unpleasant and invisible colleague -swimmers – usually bacteria, viruses and parasites. “These germs are microscopic, so you can’t say they are there,” says Bill Sullivan, a professor of microbiology and immunology at the Indiana University School of Medicine and author of Happy to meet me: genes, germs and the curious forces that make us who we are. “Swimming is a great, fun activity – don’t get me wrong. But you have to take into account that there are dangers lurking.”

This is especially true for certain people. If you are usually healthy, you will do better than some; If you are exposed to bacteria or other nasty germs, your body must recover reasonably successfully. The people who are most susceptible to serious illness are “the very young, the very old and people with existing circumstances that weaken their immune system,” says Sullivan. “If you are in one of those vulnerable populations, you should definitely swim in a doubtful water.”

We asked experts what threats can be lurking in your favorite swimming hole and how you can stay safe.

The problem with the interior

Environmental scientists have a reliable way to control water quality on popular coastal beaches, often by taking samples daily or weekly. If the bacterial levels exceed a certain threshold, they place advice online and place signs that warn swimmers that the water may be infected. “The problem with the domestic locations is that it is difficult to know where people are going to try,” says Rachel Noble, a professor at the Institute of Marine Science at the University of North Carolina, which leads a laboratory that is studying bacteria and viral pathogens in recreational and other types of water. For example, someone who kayaks a room more, can make his way to a small island, away from the main swimming area and decide to dive into to cool down.

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Yet there are resources. There are data available for many water bodies of water, although monitoring is less frequent than at coastal places. Where Noble lives in North Carolina, for example, she can Website for recreational water quality And view data – and a useful card – of the past week, six months or year. Every state has a similar source, she adds, and it is a good idea to regularly check yours.

The most common health threats

You could think E. Coli And Salmonella With regard to not done flesh or infected lettuce. But they are also the most likely types of bacteria that you encounter in a swimming hole, thanks to faecal contamination of people or, more likely, animals, says Sullivan. Imagine that cattle graze in a tributary that feeds in the lake in which you swim, for example. The only thing needed is a heavy rain shower to push their manure and animal waste into the water. “It washes downstream to where people might swim,” he says. If you end E. Coli or SalmonellaYou could potentially serious gastrointestinal symptoms – that sometimes become so bad, people land with dehydration in the hospital.

Called a bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosaIn the meantime, the swimmer’s ear causes, which can lead to ear pain, swelling and discharge. “It is not an extremely dangerous infection, and sometimes it disappears in itself,” says Sullivan. “Sometimes a shot antibiotics will clean it up, but it can still be an annoying one.”

In addition to bacteria, rotavirus and norovirus can be lurking in the water. Both cause “fast” diarrhea and vomiting, says Sullivan. Norovirus is particularly contagious, he adds, and can survive one to two weeks outside the body. If you get one of these viruses, your symptoms will probably take a few miserable days.

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Another threat, parasites, can cause a long -term need. CryptosporidiumIt is excreted by cows, usually pollutes natural water bodies – and if you get sick, you will experience watery diarrhea, stomach cramps and vomiting. “If you have a reason to believe that cattle near the water of water you swim in, it would give me a break if I want to immerse my toe in those waters,” says Sullivan. GiardiaIt is shed in the stools of animals such as beavers and MUSCRAT, is also common and leads to similar symptoms.

People usually need pharmaceutical help to recover from parasites, says Sullivan, but there are not so many treatments available for it Giardia as there are Cryptosporidium. “You usually just have to drive it out, and it’s a really unpleasant experience that lasts about one to two weeks,” he says. Parasites get stuck, especially if you are immunocomromized – and next to the physical symptoms, “there is a psychological element, because there are these creepy things in your life,” he says.

Rarer but more extreme risks

You have probably seen headlines about the dramatic sounding ‘brain -eating Amoeba’, or Naegleria Fowleri—A parasite found in warm fresh water. It can enter the noses of swimmers and then find his way to their brains, causing an infection called primary Amebian meningocephalitis that is almost always fatal. “It can feel scary because it is probably essentially everywhere, but it does not often cause illness,” says Dr. Daniel D. Rhoads, chairman of the Microbiology Committee of the College of American Pathologists and Section Head of Microbiology in the Cleveland Clinic. “I am sure that almost all of us have been exposed to it, but it usually does not cause a problem because it is physically challenging to get completely into the brain by only swimming in water.” When people get infected, they almost always die within a week.

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Meanwhile, global warming has caused a peak With “carnivorous disease”, more formally known as necrotizing fasciitis. It is caused by bacteria in salt water or brackish water and eats away with soft tissue and muscles. “What happens is that the bacteria come into the body due to a break in the skin – a kind of wound,” says Sullivan. “As soon as the root starts to shoot, it happens fairly quickly. It causes extreme pain, and it seems that it eats away from the meat, but what really happens is that the bacteria destroy muscles and nerves under the wound.”

This prevents your immune cells from reaching the site where they should be to combat the bacteria – and prevents medicines from coming. That is why the most common treatment is “either cutting away the infected tissue or even amputation,” says Sullivan.

The path to infection

The most common way in which people get sick in the interior is to swallow the water. How much you consume: “If you only swallow a little bit, you might get away with it,” says Sullivan. “But if you swallow well, there is a reasonable chance that is enough to make you sick.”

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If you keep your head above water, it can reduce germs down the chance. But it is not waterproof. When people emerge from the water, their skin may be covered with bacteria or viruses. The following that you know, they chow on a sandwich of a ham or pass bottles of water, and those germs jump from person to person. That is why after swimming you always have to clean soap and water or wash your hands with soap and water, says Sullivan; If possible, rinsing in an outdoor shower is also a good idea.

When should you see a doctor? If you feel that your gastrointestinal need is not typical, if you have a high fever, if your symptoms last after a few days, or if you see blood in your diarrhea, plant an appointment, says Rhoads.

How to stay safe

If you are determined to swim in a river or more, there are some ways to make the experience safer. This is what experts recommend.

Note a warnings

Take signs about swimming risks and serious contamination. “If someone takes the time to offer health guidance, it is worth listening to it,” says Rhoads. After checking local water quality reports, click the social media account of your destination. Some parks, for example, post warnings about the water, especially after severe storms or if there has been a sewer leak.

Use all your senses

Usually the water in which you swim, has no noticeable signs of what lurks under the surface. But if you happen to detect a dirty scent or notice a strange color in the water, stay outside. Visolation can indicate: “There is discharge from a pipe or a nearby golf course,” says Noble. “If you see a lot of clouds, or if a more clear blue and it looks brown and covered with algae, then the chance is that there is a kind of drain that will be at that location,” she says. “The drain can contain things that make you sick, so use your senses.”

Note the weather

The risk of infection peaks in the aftermath of a storm. Heavy rain can wash all kinds of contaminants in the water: dog waste from nearby paths, rubble, chemicals, human waste water and more. It is impossible to say exactly how long the risk remains increased, says Noble, because many factors influence this. But if you notice that active drain or rainwater flows over the land in the water – it is best to stay on dry land.

Choose well -maintained areas

Always do a sweeping of the area where you swim to get a pulse on his cleanliness, Noble advises. Is there visible dog waste? Flowing garbage cans? “If the trash cans are not emptied regularly, you can get many birds in it, and those birds will poop,” she says. “Then those droppings will find his way in the water.”

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Although birds will naturally inhabited areas with swim holes, the poorly maintained waste removal makes it more likely that they come together in high numbers, and that can influence the water quality.