Summer’s dog days are here, and with that precious heat (the kind that never lasts long enough in this country) comes the inevitable need to get outside and soak up some sun. Sounds perfect, right? Not so fast: There’s a few important things to be mindful of, namely spreadable infections, diseases and germs, all of which can be easily contracted if you’re not careful. Here, Dr. MacDonald fills us in on how to stay infection-free during the season of the germ.
Why does summer get such a bad rap for this kind of thing?
Well, during the summer months we see an increase in certain kinds of illnesses due to infections, and that can be related to the types of activity people do in the summer that are different than at other times of the year, and also the environment is a factor. So the hot and humid weather can be a factor, and we do tend to see certain diarrheal illnesses arise around this time due to bacteria, like salmonella or e-coli.
What’s the nastiest infection you’ve ever encountered that was discovered specifically during the summer?
I think that perhaps the important way to think about infections in the summer is that these are infections that we could potentially be at risk for all year round. It’s just means that we have to be more mindful of taking action to prevent those kind of infections, particularly concerning food safety. For instance, making sure that we’re washing our hands and our foods, cleaning [food preparation] surfaces and utensils used to make food. Also, packing our food in a way that ensures the raw meat is really separate from the fresh food is important.
What about insect-borne diseases? Which is the worst?
In the warmer months we have mosquitos here in Ontario, and mosquitos can be a source of infections like West Nile virus, for example. So at this time of year when we have [more quantities of] mosquitos, we need to be mindful of trying to avoid bites and keeping the areas around our home mosquito-free. I think that’s an example of infection where the summer months are unique out of the whole year.
In many ways I think we’ve become a society of germaphobes. So, why do you think this might be?
So, I think that people have a lot of access to a lot of information in different ways than they used to be able to access regarding info about their health and health risks (and that would include infectious disease risks), and overall I view this as a positive thing. People can educate themselves about potential risks but also about steps they can take to prevent themselves from getting sick, to promote their chances of being as healthy as possible. Certainly you know it’s important to ensure that your sources have information and are credible in getting information about your health and health risks. I think a great place to start for public health–related information would be the website of one’s local health unit.
It seems children are at a higher risk for these sorts of things, if only because they spend so much time outdoors. What sort of infectious dangers do they face during this season?
Well we certainly see that the diarrheal illnesses that peak during the summer are more common in children, specifically in children under the age of five. For example, if they’re very young (under two years old, especially), they may be exploring with their mouths and may be more likely to ingest sand, soil or water if they’re playing outside. I think the bottom line is kids need to be supervised when they’re playing outside and that we can take some steps to try to ensure that they try to avoid ingesting sand or water that is contaminated with animal feces.
Apparently pools are, well, cesspools for disease. True?
Pools and other park facilities like splash pads that are operated by cities are inspected by Public Health to make sure the water quality is adequate, and if you have a private pool, it’s important to maintain that properly to ensure that you’re not at risk of infections due to your water, and that’s why that routine maintenance is really important, but certainly there are programs in place to inspect public pools, splash pads as well as beach water quality, and you can get more information on that through your local health unit.
