Parrothead Jeff

FOXNews.com - Arizona Teen Becomes Sixth Victim This Year of Brain-Eating Amoeba - Science News | Current Articles

What was bothering Aaron was an amoeba, a microscopic organism called Naegleria fowleri that attacks the body through the nasal cavity, quickly eating its way to the brain. The doctors said he probably picked it up a week before while swimming in the balmy shallows of Lake Havasu.

Such attacks are extremely rare, though some health officials have put their communities on high alert, telling people to stay away from warm, standing water.

I haven’t gone swimming in a lake in many years, but it was a cool experience way back when. There was no salt or chlorine to burn the eyes. It tasted like tap water (not that I intentionally drank it). All that has now changed. I will never again put my head below fresh water again (without plugging my nose) in a warm climate.

I never knew about this amoeba before, but now that I do I can’t think of anything more similar to a sci-fi horror movie in real life than this. You see, when water containing this little life form enters your nose, it can latch onto your olfactory (smelling) nerve. From there, it eats away and QUICKLY EATS YOUR BRAIN. It’s nearly always fatal - usually within two weeks. Symptoms start with a persistent headache, followed by more of a headache and a stiff neck, progressing to brain damage (duh!) with resulting change in behavior and hallucinations which is then followed by death. Oh, it also usually takes about two weeks for you to exhibit symptoms.

I don’t care if it’s extremely rare. Winning the lottery is rare, but it happens all the time to people. I’m sticking to salt water, thank you very much. True, there are ways to die in the ocean, but at least they’re quick and don’t involve microscopic organisms EATING YOUR BRAIN ALIVE!!!!!