It’s found in Florida too. I guess it’s best not to immerse your head in the fresh water when it’s very warm. I’ll still take a swim to cool off though, keeping my head up!
Watch out in the bathroom! Over 30 years in EMS most of my codes were in the bathroom. The bigger the victim the less space they got themselves wedged in.
@tjalmy said:
It’s found in Florida too. I guess it’s best not to immerse your head in the fresh water when it’s very warm. I’ll still take a swim to cool off though, keeping my head up!
That seems to be the best policy.
I love saltwater
Easier said that done keeping your head dry.
You won’t immerse yourself in any natural water on purpose, if you are a microbiologist like me and have examined water samples under microscope. I saw worms in majority of my samples, even though not all worms are harmful to a HEALTHY adult.
Salt water is no better. You just get a different set of infectious organisms there.
Wash off with soap completely really helps. Don’t immerse any open wound (you may die from doing that). Or at least treat wound with hydrogen peroxide and 75% alcohol asap.
I don’t know I survived chilhood playing in southern rivers, the ocean, and the local creek that served as a sewage overflow.
As Jimmy Buffett sang…“I’d rather die while I’m living than live while I’m dead”. I hope to keep snorkeling, splashing, and diving as long as my body allows it!
I am not trying to scare anyone. But a few months ago, I heard (from news) a middle-aged guy died of flesh-eating bacteria from saltwater near Galveston/Clear Lake Texas.
If you go to Armand Bayou and Clear Creek in my area, you will see government signs that read “fish caught in this water is not safe to consume”. Translation = " water here is polluted ".
I should clarify in saying that I swim in seawater quite a bit myself. But I never take in water with mouth or go there with a wound. Always wash off with soap. That is the take home message. I started doing that, after I saw those worms in water samples that appeared quote clean. YMMV.
Why surfing should be done in the ocean, up north, on real waves…
Sure don’t gulp the water, but it’s misguided to believe that keeping your head out of water makes you safe. Many, maybe most infections come from cuts, scrapes and other common types of skin related exposure.