Commonly known as the brain-eating amoeba, Naegleria fowleri (N. fowleri) is a strain of amoeba that, as reported by USA Today, claimed the life of a two-year-old boy who was infected by the organism after visiting Ash Springs, a natural hot spring in Lincoln County, Nevada. Bundy’s condition spiraled out of control with severe fevers, headaches, nausea, and eventually a coma. Giving the health world and the public a scare with a 97% mortality rate, N. fowleri easily inspires fear in the common reader, yet should you be scared of it?
N. fowleri belong to the scientific kingdom of Protista and are microscopic organism that extends themselves to move by way of pseudopods. Essentially a gel coating over endoplasm, amoebae hunt by surrounding prey and consuming them.
Thriving in warm waters, N. fowleri can be found in hot springs, fountains, and even pools or recreation centers with low chlorine levels. By themself, N. fowleri is relatively harmless. According to the National Library of Medicine, it can even be swallowed without much problem. It is a free-living amoeba, which means that its natural prey are bacteria and other microorganisms, and there are plenty of bacteria to consume in the human body. Due to this, N. fowleri are diverted from attacking bodily cells and instead target other microscopic prey in the human body.
However, the problem starts as soon as N. fowleri gets high up in your nose. There are fewer bacteria higher up in your nose, and more bodily cells are present. N. fowleri are attracted by a common and important molecule secreted by the olfactory bulb, acetylcholine. Following this chemical, N. fowleri slowly climbs towards the brain. It can then enter the brain through the olfactory canal and cause deadly inflammatory responses, which can ultimately compress the brain and damage the brain stem. Without bacteria as a target, N. fowleri also consumes neurons and releases damaging toxins that also harm other neurons.
Since its attack on the neurons of affected humans can cause primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), N. fowleri are often painted in a bad light. But in reality, there are low risks of infection. An article from the National Library of Medicine states that although common, N. fowleri will only harm the body if entering the nasal canal, and even then has to slip through multiple layers of immune defense to get to the neural cells. According to Oxford Academic, there have only been 381 cases from 1962 to 2023. Compared to conventional drowning, which claims over 4,000 cases each year, it is highly unlikely to suffer PAM from N. fowleri.
In all, you don’t have to worry about contracting this deadly disease when out swimming. However, some precautions can be taken. For example, when swimming outdoors in unchlorinated areas such as a pond or lake, be sure not to stir up bottom sediment, as that is where amoebae commonly live. Not allowing the potentially contaminated water high up your nose can also help with the prevention of the disease.
