Summer is swimming season. At the sea, but also in rivers, lakes and ponds. Nevertheless microorganisms can come and spoil our pleasure by pure waterThose are cyanobacteria. They like the heat and are proliferating especially this 2022 season, which sees a succession of heat wave episodes. They are particularly recognizable by their green color, the surface of the water and their bad smell.
Because toxins they release, poisoning with cyanobacteria is possible in humans, with the following symptoms: “itching, irritation of the skin, nose, throat or eyes, pimples, tremors, fever, abdominal pain, muscle pain , nausea, vomiting, dizziness”, list Haut-Rhin prefecture in a press release dated August 5, 2022. You must then consult a doctor quickly.
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“Ingestion or inhalation of cyanobacteria can also cause hepatic toxicities (problems with the liver) and neurotoxicities (trembling, tingling, paralysis, etc.)”, adds ANSES in an article published in September 2020 and updated in its dossier “étésanssouci“.
How to avoid cyanobacteria poisoning?
In France, one of the main causes of contamination is “inhalation, accidental ingestion of water, or skin contact with cyanobacteria and cyanotoxins during recreational activities (rowing, water skiing, canoeing, etc.), explains ANSES. Consumption of contaminated freshwater fish can also be the cause of poisoning.
It is therefore recommended to:
- do not practice water activities in areas of visible cyanobacterial accumulation (clumps of algae)
- take good care of the children
- keep dogs away from the area
- do not swim outside authorized sites and monitored
- wash after swimming
- clean water sports equipment
- avoid contact with scum
Re fish consumptionit is necessary “to head and gut the fish before eating them, not to eat small fish whole”, specifies ANSES again.