One expert's advice for swimmers at the Rio Olympics? 'Don't put your head underwater.'
Swimmers at the Rio Olympics might have a hard time following one expert's advice on how to avoid getting "violently ill" during the festivities in Brazil. After a study revealed alarmingly high levels of viral contamination in Rio's waters, Valerie Harwood, chair of the Department of Integrative Biology at the University of South Florida, is offering this warning to Rio athletes and tourists: "Don't put your head underwater."
The advice followed the release of the final results of a 16-month-long study commissioned by The Associated Press, which revealed "viral levels at up to 1.7 million times what would be considered worrisome in the United States or Europe." "Seeing that level of human pathogenic virus is pretty much unheard of in surface waters in the U.S.," Harwood told AP. "You would never, ever see these levels because we treat our waste water."
With contamination that high, The Associated Press reported a mere three teaspoons of water can "cause stomach and respiratory illnesses and more rarely heart and brain inflammation."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
More than 1,000 athletes are set to compete in water events at the Rio Olympics, which kick off Friday, Aug. 5. Head over to The Associated Press for more on the story.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
'The House under GOP rule has become a hostile workplace'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
The Shohei Ohtani gambling scandal is about more than bad bets
In The Spotlight The firestorm surrounding one of baseball's biggest stars threatens to upend a generational legacy and professional sports at large
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Feds raid Diddy homes in alleged sex trafficking case
Speed Read Homeland Security raided the properties of hip hop mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Iowa's Caitlin Clark breaks NCAA scoring record
speed read College basketball star Caitlin Clark set the new record in Iowa's defeat of Ohio State
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Eight-year-old Brit Bodhana Sivanandan makes chess history
Speed Read Sivanandan has been described as a 'phenomenon' by chess masters
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Watch Simone Biles win her record 8th US gymnastics championship
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Spain beats England 1-0 to win its first Women's World Cup
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
US knocked out of Women's World Cup in stunning exit
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Katie Ledecky surpasses Michael Phelps for most world championship titles
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Marketa Vondrousova becomes first unseeded woman to win Wimbledon
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Former Mets player receives annual $1.1M payout despite retiring in 2001
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published