Health
With some Olympic events postponed, Seine River water quality poses concerns
As Paris opened the 2024 Summer Olympic Games along the Seine River, it was easy for many to fall in love with the romantic waterway and forget what lies beneath.
But the steady rain this past Friday was a reminder of how the weather impacts the river’s water quality.
Organizers canceled the practice run for the upcoming triathlon on both Sunday and Monday due to concerns that the heavy rains negatively impacted the water quality, according to multiple reports.
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Officials were still optimistic that warmer temperatures would reduce the bacteria levels so the men’s triathlon could proceed as planned on Tuesday — but the race was ultimately postponed.
“Despite the improvement in the water quality levels in the last hours, the readings at some points of the swim course are above acceptable levels,” the World Triathlon said in a statement on X.
Triathlon athletes dive in the Seine River during a test event for the women’s triathlon for the upcoming 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, on Aug. 17, 2023. Organizers canceled the practice run for the upcoming triathlon on both Sunday and Monday due to concerns that the heavy rains negatively impacted the water quality. (Getty Images)
Experts from University of Florida (UF) Health, a member of the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Medical Network, discussed with Fox News Digital how the Seine River could impact athletes’ health.
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The quality of water may vary depending on the time of day and the number of infectious particles consumed, Kartikeya Cherabuddi, M.D., professor of infectious diseases and global medicine at the University of Florida, told Fox News Digital.
“Taking precautions and being aware of potential symptoms so they can be managed early is important,” he said.
River gets a makeover
For the past 100 years, swimming has been illegal in the Seine River due to poor water quality — with the exception of rare competitions, according to multiple reports.
“The city of Paris has put a great deal of effort into cleaning up the Seine,” Nicole Iovine, M.D., Ph.D., chief epidemiologist and chief quality officer at UF Health, told Fox News Digital.
A general view of the pontoon used by triathlon athletes moored on the River Seine, Paris, on the second day of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games in France. Poor water quality in the Seine caused swimming training for the triathlon to be canceled on Sunday. (Getty Images)
“[As in] many old cities, both sewage and storm runoff travel in the same pipe that is destined for water treatment plants,” she said.
“If there are heavy rains, the pipe capacity can be overwhelmed, and the excess can end up in the Seine.”
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To prepare for the Olympics, the city spent $1.5 billion to build an underground storage basin, called “Austerlitz Basin,” along with a renovated sewer system and upgraded treatment plants.
The goal was for the improved system to collect excess rain to prevent wastewater from flowing into the Seine, according to a recent report.
Heavy rains, however, could thwart those efforts.
Daily water testing
About one week before the Olympic Games, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo took a highly publicized dip on July 17 to show that the waters were safe for the triathlon and marathon events.
Later testing, however, revealed that in some areas, levels of E. coli bacteria were above Europe’s maximum safety limit, which is 900 colony-forming units per 100 milliliters.
One person swimming in the river doesn’t prove that the water is safe, experts pointed out.
Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo is shown swimming in the Seine River on July 17, 2024, in Paris. One person swimming in the river doesn’t prove that the water is safe, experts pointed out. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
“The risk of aspirating river water is much greater when engaged in a highly exertional activity like a competitive race compared to a more leisurely dip in the Seine,” Iovine said.
Eau de Paris, the largest public water company in France, found that the Seine’s water quality for the week of July 17 “reached the compliance thresholds of the European directive at all four points monitored over four days,” according to the city’s website.
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The water is tested early each morning during the Olympics to ensure that the events can proceed as planned, officials say.
The tests typically screen for certain types of bacteria called total coliforms, and generally do not look for other germs, like viruses and parasites, Iovine noted.
E. coli (Escherichia coli) is a group of bacteria in the intestinal tract that helps to digest food and protect the body from harmful germs, but some types can cause illness. (iStock)
Most coliforms, which are found naturally in the environment as well as in human and animal waste, are not harmful — and the ones that can cause illness are usually present in low amounts that don’t pose a threat, he said.
High levels of coliforms, however, can be a marker of excessive fecal matter, which can make people sick, according to experts.
“If the amount of coliforms increases, that could be because significant numbers of pathogenic bacteria, like E. coli, have entered the water, making it potentially unsafe,” Iovine warned.
Potentially harmful contaminants
E. coli (Escherichia coli) is a group of bacteria in the intestinal tract that helps to digest food and protect the body from harmful germs, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Some types, however, can cause illness.
“I am concerned that if the level of harmful bacteria is too high, the athletes [could be] at risk for contracting gastrointestinal illness.”
People can get infected by swallowing water that is contaminated with the waste of an infected person.
Common bacterial symptoms include watery or bloody diarrhea, severe stomach cramps, and vomiting that may be associated with a fever, according to the CDC.
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Other bacteria associated with sewage, such as Enterococcus, Salmonella and Campylobacter, can cause a similar array of infections, Iovine warned.
“I am concerned that if the level of harmful bacteria is too high, the athletes [could be] at risk for contracting gastrointestinal illness,” she said.
Skin and eye infections are also possible if people have small nicks or abrasions on their skin before entering the water.
Parasites, like Giardia, amoebas and Cryptosporidium — and viruses, such as norovirus, hepatitis A and hepatitis E — may also be present in human and animal sewage, Iovine added.
A tourist boat navigates on the Seine River under the Alexandre III Bridge, after the first triathlon training session was canceled during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games on July 28, 2024, due to poor water quality. (Getty Images)
Symptoms of viruses and parasites are predominantly stomach-related, such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain, but can also include fevers, headaches, and respiratory or urinary issues, Cherabuddi noted.
“Symptoms may start within one to two days, but could present a week or two later,” he added.
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Harmful pathogens carried by rodents can also enter the river with overflow from rainwater, Iovine said.
The urine of rodents, for example, can contain bacteria called Leptospires, which can cause a bacterial disease called leptospirosis.
Triathlon athletes compete and swim in the Seine River during a test event for the women’s triathlon for the upcoming 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, on Aug. 17, 2023. (Getty Images)
That condition can cause nausea, vomiting, body aches, red eyes, fever and headache, according to Iovine.
“Since these athletes are young and healthy, I would expect them to recover from these infections if they occurred, but it could impact their ability to compete in their events if they are sick,” she said.
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Athletes who are immunocompromised may experience more severe illness than those with healthy immune systems.
Fox News Digital reached out to the International Olympics Committee and Eau de Paris requesting comment.
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An accidental lab discovery has opened the door to entirely new ways of preventing the flu.
While investigating how influenza replicates, researchers discovered that different flu strains use completely different strategies to infiltrate human cells, SWNS reported.
By targeting the specific molecules the viruses rely on, scientists found that they could block them from entering new cells and halt their replication altogether.
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Researchers say these “fundamental insights” into seasonal influenza highlight a clear path toward developing better preventive medications.
“The hope is that fundamental, curiosity-based research like this helps to pave the way for novel strategies to treat and prevent influenza infections,” principal investigator Dr. Emily Bruce, from the University of Vermont’s Larner College of Medicine, said in the SWNS report.
While investigating how influenza replicates, researchers discovered that different flu strains use completely different strategies to infiltrate human cells. (iStock)
While several flu strains cause illness, H1N1 and H3N2 influenza A viruses are the most common. However, current flu tests cannot differentiate between them, and clinical treatments are identical for both.
Although vaccines and antivirals are available, Bruce noted a “dire” need for better medications to stop the virus from spreading cell to xxcell.
“You don’t get sick when a virus is in one cell,” he noted. “You get sick because a virus replicates itself and goes into many more cells.”
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The study, which was published in The Journal of Virology, originally aimed to map how viral RNA segments are transported within cells to create new viral particles.
The team used H1N1 and H3N2 viruses isolated from the nasal passages of positive patients in 2022.
Clinical treatments remain identical for both primary strains of the flu virus. (iStock)
During the investigation, the team unexpectedly stumbled upon a cellular pathway that blocked the virus from entering lung cells, SWNS reported.
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The data revealed that when a specific human protein called Rab11B was depleted, H3N2 viruses failed to enter human lung cells. H1N1 viruses were completely unaffected.
Using reverse genetics, the team mapped this defect and uncovered a brand-new, H3N2-specific role for Rab11B during viral entry.
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This discovery challenged the scientific assumption that all flu viruses enter cells the same way.
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“Viruses are like pirates from different countries hijacking someone’s ship,” Bruce said. “Different viruses, like different types of pirates, use different methods to get onboard.”
This discovery challenged the scientific assumption that all flu viruses enter cells the same way. (iStock)
“We had previously thought that all flu viruses used the same way to get into a cell, but we discovered that this is not true,” she went on. “H1N1 and H3N2 need different proteins to get in, and if you get rid of the right protein, a specific virus can’t get in.”
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While these findings identify a critical cellular pathway for viral entry, the study was conducted using isolated cells, the researchers acknowledged.
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Further research is needed to determine whether blocking the protein is safe and effective within a live, complex human respiratory system.
Bruce and the team hope to conduct further research to determine whether this Rab11B-dependency is a fundamental property of H3N2, or if it’s a trait unique to currently circulating flu strains.
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Eating processed meat like ham, sausage and bacon may be linked to a higher risk of certain types of cancer, according to new research.
While health organizations have already confirmed that processed meat can contribute to colon cancer, this study looked closer at cancers in the upper digestive tract, where the link has historically been less clear.
To understand these connections, researchers from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC), one of the world’s largest long-term nutrition and cancer cohorts, tracked the health and diets of 450,112 people across Europe for an average of 14 years.
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The study group included 131,426 men and 318,686 women, according to the study’s press release.
During the follow-up period, 876 people developed stomach cancer and 215 people developed esophageal adenocarcinoma, which is cancer of the tube connecting the mouth to the stomach.
For female participants, eating both processed meat and white meat was linked to an increased risk of developing the disease. (iStock)
Researchers tracked where the stomach cancers grew, separating them into the upper part of the stomach near the throat and the lower part of the stomach.
The researchers also sorted the tumors into two categories based on how the cancer cells appeared under a microscope: intestinal, which forms more organized structures, and diffuse, in which the cells are more scattered throughout the tissue.
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After adjusting for other lifestyle factors, the researchers found that for every extra 30 grams of processed meat a person ate per day, their overall risk of stomach cancer went up by 9%. Eating that same extra 30 grams a day was also linked to a 13% higher risk of esophageal adenocarcinoma.
A standard single slice of regular deli-sliced ham or lunch meat averages around 28 grams, according to USDA data and nutritional tracking databases.
An extra 20 grams of white meat, such as chicken and turkey, was linked to a 12% higher risk of cancer in the main body of the stomach. (iStock)
An extra 20 grams of white meat, such as chicken or turkey, was linked to a 12% higher risk of cancer in the main body of the stomach, the researchers noted.
The study also revealed differences between men and women. For male participants, only processed meat showed a clear, statistically significant link to a higher risk of stomach cancer. For female participants, however, eating both processed meat and white meat was linked to an increased risk.
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These findings align with global health benchmarks, particularly those established by the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer.
The agency has long classified processed meat as a known human carcinogen, primarily due to its strong, well-documented links to colorectal cancer.
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However, health organizations have also consistently pointed to a potential, yet less definitive, relationship between these meats and cancers of the stomach.
Eating 30 grams of processed meat a day, or the equivalent to one slice of ham, was linked to a 13% higher risk of esophageal adenocarcinoma. (iStock)
Further scientific investigation is needed to confirm the findings and to account for other underlying risk factors, such as certain stomach infections, which could interact with dietary habits.
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A key limitation of the study is its reliance on self-reported diets, which can sometimes lead to inaccuracies in how participants recall their meat consumption over time, the researchers noted.
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The findings were published in the International Journal of Cancer.
Fox News Digital reached out to the researchers requesting comment.
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