Beaver fever closes New York spring; 6 sick from giardia
The Times Union reports the Rensselaer County Health Department closed a spring Friday after six people became sick with "beaver fever” after drinking water obtained from the site.
Residents are advised not to drink water from a spring located one-quarter mile north of the intersection of routes 22 and 43.
The intestinal illness is caused by a microscopic parasite called Giardia lamblia.
Don't kiss fish
I’ve written extensively about the salmonella-related dangers of kissing pet turtles during my time as an emotionally-vacant adolescent.
Martin Armstrong, a member of the Fisheries Advisory Council, a life member in Trout Unlimited and a member of the Outdoor Writers Association of America, asks in The Advocate, ever watch a competitive angler on TV kiss a big fish that he just caught?
Did you ever kiss a big fish that made your day or, better yet, win a party boat pool?
Well, when you kiss that big fish you are risking contracting a bothersome intestinal parasite.
Giardiasis is a diarrheal illness caused by a microscopic parasite, Giardia intestinalis (also known as Giardia lamblia or Giardia duodenalis). Once a person or animal has been infected with Giardia, the parasite lives in the intestine and is passed in feces. Because an outer shell protects the parasite, it can survive outside the body and in the environment for long periods of time -- often several months or even a year or more.
53 sick with Giardia in Ilkley, U.K.
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Health officials urged people suffering symptoms of giardia lamblia to stay away from swimming pools as the number of infected people climbed to 53.The Ilkley Gazette reports that the investigations continue to focus on Saffron restaurant, Station Plaza, currently closed for refurbishment, after local water supplies were ruled out.
The incubation period for the bug can be up to 25 days, and those who have contracted the illness may not show symptoms until then.
The PCT is still advising anyone with the symptoms of diarrhoea, gas or flatulence, indigestion, nausea, stomach cramps, bloatedness and lethargy, to see their GP. The trust also advises food handlers and health care workers who show the symptoms to seek advice about continuing to work.
Sounds like most people in the U.S. after Thanksgiving yesterday.
