Spread of Norovirus through Pesticide Spraying

As Dr.Mercola mentioned in his article “Pesticide Spraying may Spread Norovirus” norovirus is the leading cause of food-borne outbreaks in the US, with fresh produce, especially leafy vegetables and fruits) among the most common culprits.

Reality is that contaminated water is a potential introduction source of norovirus to fresh produce. This has centered on water used to irrigate crops. Several researches were done to determine if irrigating water could be a source of norovirus spread and the results showed that it could. Environment Health Perspectives reported that in seven of the eight pesticides tested, norovirus persisted even two hours later.

“Farmers mix pesticides with water from sources including wells, irrigation ditches, rivers and lakes. All these water sources have been known to harbor norovirus. Until recently, no one had tested whether norovirus in contaminated water remains infectious after pesticides are added.”

Researches showed the virus is able to stay in contaminated water and be active when it’s sprayed onto crops.

So pesticides “may not only be a chemical hazard, but also a microbiological hazard for public health. The inclusion of antiviral substances in reconstituted pesticides may be appropriate to reduce the virologic health risk posted by the application of pesticides.”

Researches came with recommendations to add antiviral substances to water, a much simpler and healthier.

Buy organic as much as possible, since this eliminates the use of chemical pesticides.

Norovirus

Norovirus is a genus of genetically diverse single-stranded RNA, non-enveloped viruses in Caliciviridae family. The viruses are transmitted by fecally contaminated food or water, by person-to-person contact, and via aerosolization of the virus and subsequent contamination of surfaces.

Norovirus can survive for long periods outside a human host depending on the surface and temperature conditions: can stay for weeks on hard surfaces and up to 12 days on contaminated fabrics, and it can survive for months, maybe even years in contaminated still water. The virus survives 7 days after contamination on several surfaces used for food preparation.

Noroviruses have a big impact on people’s health. Noroviruses are responsible for more than half of all food-borne disease outbreaks each year. They are the most common cause of diarrhea in adults and the second most common cause in children.

Noroviruses are a group of viruses that cause inflammation of the stomach and large intestine lining; they are the leading cause of gastroenteritis in the U.S. . They are originally called the Norwalk virus.

Noroviruses are sometimes called food poisoning, because they can be transmitted through food that’s been contaminated with the virus. They aren’t always the result of food contamination. Noroviruses are also called the stomach flu, although they aren’t the influenza virus.

People become infected with noroviruses when they eat food and drink liquids that have been contaminated, raw or undercooked oysters and raw fruits and vegetables have been implicated in some outbreaks. You can also get infected if you touch an object or surface that has been infected with the virus and then touch an object or surface that has been infected with the virus and then touch your nose, mouth, or eyes.

Noroviruses can survive temperature extremes in water and on surfaces.

Once someone is infected from contaminated food, the virus can quickly pass from person to person through shared food or utensils, by shaking hands or through other close contact. People who have weekend immune system are particularly susceptible to catching noroviruses.

If you come down with a norovirus infection, you will probably go from being completely healthy to feeling absolutely miserable within a day or two after being exposed to the virus. 

Typical symptoms include nausea, vomiting, watery diarrhea and stomach cramps. Other norovirus symptoms include: low-grade fever, chills, headache, muscle aches, fatigue.

Most of these symptoms aren’t serious, but diarrhea and vomiting can deplete your body of the fluid it needs and you can become dehydrated. Children and the elderly are most susceptible to dehydration, as well as malnutrition from not getting enough nutrients.

You have to take stool test to confirm that you have the illness. 

A small percentage of people who are infected with noroviruses never have any symptoms, which suggests they might have some natural protection from the virus.

Noroviruses, like other viruses, don’t respond to antibiotics, which are designed to kill bacteria. No antiviral drug can treat noroviruses, but in healthy people the illness go away on its own within a couple of days. Most people don’t have any long-term problems from the virus.

To prevent dehydration, drink plenty of liquids, especially water and juices. Drink an oral rehydration solution to replace lost fluids and electrolytes. Avoid sugary drinks, which can make diarrhea worse, as well as alcohol and caffeinated beverages, which can dehydrate you further.

Symptoms of dehydration include dizziness when standing, dry mouth and decrease in urination. Severe dehydration is sometimes treated with intravenous (IV) fluids. 

Good hygiene is the key to prevent an infection with norovirus, especially when you are in close surroundings with people. So wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 15 seconds, or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer, especially after going to the bathroom and before you prepare or eat food. Carefully dispose contaminated items. Wash raw fruits and vegetables thoroughly. Cook oysters and other shellfish before eating them. Clean and disinfect surfaces with the mixture of detergent and chlorine bleach after someone is sick. If you have norovirus, don’t prepare food for at least two to three days after you feel better. Try not to eat food that has been prepared by someone else who is sick.

Trust and Nature

Never trust anyone who wants what you've got.

Never trust anyone who wants what you've got.

Unconditional

Unconditional love really exists in each of us, in nature. 
It is part of our deep inner human being. 

Mercury and Its Effects

Mercury pollution can be a serious health threat, especially for children and pregnant women.

Mercury is emitted to the air by power plants, cement plants, certain chemical manufacturers and other industrial facilities. In addition, over the years, many companies have used mercury to manufacture a range of products including thermometers, thermostats and automotive light switches. These products can release mercury, particularly at the end of their useful life during waste handling and disposal. Mercury pollution released into the environment becomes a serious threat when it settles into oceans and waterways, where it builds up in fish that we eat. Children and women of childbearing age are most at risk.

Mercury in Fish

Once mercury enters a waterway, naturally occurring bacteria absorb it and convert it to a form called methyl mercury. 

This transition is particularly significant for humans, who absorb methyl mercury easily and are especially vulnerable to its effects.

Mercury then works its way up the food chain as large fish consume contaminated smaller fish. Instead of dissolving or breaking down, mercury accumulates at ever-increasing levels. Predatory fish such as large tuna, swordfish, shark and mackerel can have mercury concentrations in their bodies that are 10,000 times higher than those of their surrounding habitat.

Mercury and Human Health

Humans risk ingesting dangerous levels of mercury when they eat contaminated fish. Since mercury is odorless, invisible and accumulates in the meat of the fish, it is not easy to detect and can't be avoided by trimming off the skin or other parts.

Once in the human body, mercury acts as a neurotoxin, interfering with the brain and nervous system.

Exposure to mercury can be particularly hazardous for pregnant women and small children. During the first several years of life, a child's brain is still developing and rapidly absorbing nutrients. Even in low doses, mercury may affect a child's development, delaying walking and talking, shortening attention span and causing learning disabilities. Less frequent, high dose prenatal and infant exposures to mercury can cause mental retardation, cerebral palsy, deafness and blindness.

In adults, mercury poisoning can adversely affect fertility and blood pressure regulation and can cause memory loss, tremors, vision loss and numbness of the fingers and toes. A growing body of evidence suggests that exposure to mercury may also lead to heart disease.

Mercury and a High-Fish Diet

A 2009 study of federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data concluded that roughly one in 40 women of childbearing age have mercury in their blood above 5.8 micrograms per liter of blood - a level that could pose a risk to a developing fetus. This is a significant improvement from data ten years ago, which showed that one out of 15 women had mercury in their blood at this level. Newer science indicates, however, that mercury actually concentrates in the umbilical cord blood that goes to the fetus, so mercury levels as low as 3.4 micrograms per liter of a mother’s blood are now a concern. Nearly one in 13 women of reproductive age in the United States has mercury in her blood at or above this level, according to the latest data.

Dr. Jane Hightower, a doctor of internal medicine at the California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco also linked fish consumption to elevated mercury levels when she tested her own patients. Her 2003 study found that 89 percent of the participating patients - chosen because of their fish-heavy diets - had elevated mercury levels. Many had levels as much as four times that which the Environmental Protection Agency considers safe.

The good news is that Dr. Hightower and other health professionals conclude that high mercury levels are reversible: cutting consumption of mercury-contaminated fish causes blood mercury to drop, though it can take six months or more.

Poisoned by Mercury

Mercury is a chemical element with the symbol Hg and atomic number 80.

Mercury is a naturally occurring element that is found in air, water and soil. A highly toxic form (methyl-mercury) builds up in fish, shellfish and animals that eat fish. Fish and shellfish are the main sources of methyl-mercury exposure to humans.

Mercury exposure at high levels can harm the brain, heart, kidneys, lungs, and immune system. High levels of methyl-mercury in the bloodstream of unborn babies and young children may harm the developing nervous system, making the child less able to think and learn.

Symptoms of methyl-mercury poisoning may include impairment of peripheral vision; disturbances in sensations ("pins and needles" feelings); lack of coordination; impairment of speech, hearing, walking; and muscle weakness.

Elemental (metallic) mercury primarily causes health effects when it is breathed as a vapor where it can be absorbed through the lungs. Symptoms include tremors, emotional changes, insomnia, weakness, muscle atrophy, twitching, headaches, disturbances in sensations, changes in nerve responses, and performance deficits on tests of cognitive function. Higher exposures may result in kidney effects, respiratory failure and death.

Consult your doctor if you believe you have been exposed to mercury.

Recycling of mercury-containing products is one of the best ways to help prevent mercury releases to the environment by keeping these products out of landfills and incinerators.

Mercury poisoning facts by John P. Cunha, DO, FACOEP

Honor the Children Globally

June 1 - the first day of summer. 

June 1 – International Day for Protection of Children. 

"We were all Children once. And we all share the desire for the well-being of our Children, which has always been and will continue to be the most Universally cherished aspiration of Humankind." 

The World Conference for the Well-being of Children in Geneva, Switzerland, proclaimed June 1 to be International Children's Day in 1925. It is usually marked with speeches on Children's rights and well-being, and other events involving or dedicated to Children.

Armenia ratified the Convention on Children’s Rights in 1992, after which in 1996 the Law of the Republic of Armenia “Children’s Rights” was adopted. Armenia organizes and holds different events dedicated to the Children Protection Day.

In Armenia June is made a real festivity for Children by the cultural and entertainment organizations. Different events are held in Armenia.