Category: prevention and fitness

Don’t Drink the Water- How to Avoid Water-related Illness

In this post learn how Water can pose health risks beyond drinking, including illnesses from contact during swimming or recreational activities. Drowning is a significant risk, especially for children. Common waterborne illnesses include gastrointestinal and respiratory conditions. Prevention strategies, such as swimming safety skills and avoiding contaminated water, can prevent these dangers.

You’ve probably heard the advice “Don’t drink the water” when you travel to less developed areas of the world. But water can make you sick even without drinking it.

Illness from Contact with Water

Bacteria and other disease-causing organisms can be transmitted by swimming and other water-related sports

  • in private and public pools
  • recreational freshwater and oceans
  • hot tubs, splash pads, water parks
  • decorative fountains

Drinking, inhaling, and direct contact with water contaminated with a variety of bugs can cause a wide range of illnesses, most of which are preventable. Here is an overview of common conditions to watch out for.

Drowning

The most serious risk of water is drowning or near-drowning, with 3,300 deaths and another 5,000 hospitalizations annually in the United States.

Children are especially at risk of drowning. Teaching children to swim as early as practical and supervising them around pools and other bodies of water are critical to prevention.

Drowning Prevention

  • Learn basic swimming and water safety skills
  • Build fences that fully enclose pools
  • Wear a life jacket
  • continue reading at the link
caution signs at a swimming pool.
Drowning can be prevented by following rules.

Gastrointestinal (stomach and intestines) Illnesses-

Symptoms
  • Nausea,
  • vomiting,
  • diarrhea,
  • cramps,
  • fever
Causes
stream with a kayak
Water in creeks, streams, and rivers is not safe to swallow.

Respiratory (nose, throat, lungs) illnesses

Symptoms
  • cough,
  • nasal/sinus congestion,
  • ear pain/fullness,fever
Swimmer’s Ear
Causes-
  • pool chemicals
  • Legionella and other bacteria
rapids in a stream

Skin Conditions

Symptoms–
  • rash,
  • redness,
  • itching,
  • burning
Causes –

Most of these conditions resolve without treatment, or are treatable with appropriate antibiotics.

two people dangling their legs into a pool.
Don’t let water related illness spoil your summer fun. photo from stock photo site- Lightstock.com- affiliate link

Serious but Rare

Primary amebic meningoencephalitis is a rare but deadly sinus-related infection caused by Naegleria fowleri in freshwater and soil 

Leptospirosis is another brain infection caused by a group of spirochetes known collectively as leptospires. It is also infrequent.

Preventing Water-related Infection

  1. Don’t drink water used for recreation even if treated with chlorine.
  2. Children younger than five years should not use hot tubs.
  3. Persons with diarrhea or recent diarrhea infection should not swim for one week after symptoms have cleared.
  4. Swimmers should shower before using a hot tub or pool.
  5. Don’t swim with open wounds, or use waterproof bandage if you do. .
  6. Learn more and get more tips on staying well at these links from

drawing of a child standing on a diving board at a pool
from the American Academy of Family Physicians

from American Family Physician

Waterborne Illnesses

Talk to your doctor if you have bloody diarrhea, diarrhea that lasts more than a week, or a cough with fever. See your doctor right away if you have more serious symptoms, such as fever and a stiff neck after swimming in a freshwater pond, or a bad skin infection with fever. Be sure to tell your doctor that you’ve been in the water.

Safe Surfing

Sharks very rarely attack people. Common sense can protect you from most shark attacks. Do not go into the water if sharks have been reported in your area. Do not surf if you are bleeding or have open cuts. If you see a shark, get out of the water. Do not try to touch the shark. Get help right away if you think you have been bitten.

Sea Creature Injuries and Fish Poisoning

To avoid ciguatera poisoning, don’t eat the fish that often carry the ciguatera toxin. This includes amberjack, grouper, snapper, sturgeon, king mackerel, barracuda, and moray eel.

in a Key West Florida art shop

At Smithsonian, learn about

8 diseases to watch out for at the beach 

man and woman next to a wooden boat on a beach
My husband and I are enjoying the beach on our last day in Zanzibar

Exploring the HEART of Summer Health

I took all of the photos in this post except the cover photo. It and another one are from Lightstock, credited in the caption.

I’d love for you to follow this blog. I share information and inspiration to help you transform challenges into opportunities for learning and growth.

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I enjoy seeing who is new to Watercress Words. When you subscribe, I will visit your blog or website. Thanks and see you next time.

Dr. Aletha

5 Health Resolutions Worth Keeping

The start of a new year is a good time to reassess priorities. If you plan to make resolutions, consider these five health resolutions: improving food choices, increasing physical activity, avoiding smoking, pursuing knowledge, and helping others. Links to blogs and resources provide guidance to set and achieve these goals for better health.

updated January 19, 2026

I don’t make New Year’s resolutions, but I think the start of a new year, whether the calendar year, your birthday, or any time, can be a prompt to evaluate our priorities and what we are doing to make them happen.

5 Health Facets to Evaluate

In this post I suggest 5 health issues we can evaluate and resolve to improve every year. I’ve listed links to previous blog posts and other sources to help you set goals and make them happen.

milk, yogurt, fruits, vegetables
Resolving to make better food choices.

 1. Resolve to healthier food choices

6 steps to losing weight and gaining hope

Less red meat + more vegetables = less cancer

Top Cancer-Fighting Foods from WebMD

 

2. Resolve to be more active physically

Most of us are not Olympic-level athletes, but we can all aim to achieve our best physical level possible.

A tour of the U.S. Olympic Training Center, Colorado Springs, Colorado

A visit to the United States Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs showcases the dedication and resilience of Olympic and Paralympic athletes. Promoting physical activity, it emphasizes the health benefits of exercise, while sharing the “Winning Attitudes” and determination exhibited by champions. The center inspires a commitment to personal excellence and perseverance.

Keep reading

3. Resolve to abstain from smoking

7 Surprising Reasons to be Smoke Free

In this post I remember how smoking has changed since I was a child. The health risk was minimized or even ignored. But that changed. Even so, it remains a leading cause of preventable illness. Here are resources for quitting .

Keep reading

4. Resolve to experience and learn new things

Reading books may add years to your life, according to Harvard Medical School

5. Resolve to care about others

And the good Samaritan is…

Jesus told the story of the good Samaritan to answer the question,

“Who is my neighbor?”

The term “good Samaritan” means a person who goes out of their way to help someone, especially a stranger, often at  personal sacrifice.

Keep reading

With my DAR chapter, I promote literacy in local schools by donating book gifts to kids at Christmas.

What will you resolve to do?

Which of these resolutions is important to you, or if not these, what is?

What will you gain by pursuing your resolution? What will you lose if you don’t?

What will you do TODAY to get started?

The cover image for this post was created with JetpackAI.

Exploring the HEART of Health

I’d love for you to follow this blog. I share information and inspiration to help you transform challenges into opportunities for learning and growth.

Add your name to the subscribe box to be notified of new posts by email. Click the link to read the post and browse other content. It’s that simple. No spam.

I enjoy seeing who is new to Watercress Words. When you subscribe, I will visit your blog or website. Thanks and see you next time.

Thanks,

Dr. Aletha

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This information is current as of the date of original publication or update. It may have changed by the time you read this. I invite you to fact-check what you read here.

Please do not use this information for diagnosis or treatment purposes. Before making health decisions, discuss with your physician or other qualified healthcare provider.