Your beach is home to sand, surf and deadly germs — beware of these bacteria

If you want your health to be shipshape this summer — you should be aware of the dangerous germs you could be exposed to at the beach.

As oceans begin heating up during the summer months, the water can become a breeding ground for an array of nasty diseases.

Last week, a South Carolina man found that out the hard way after stepping on a seashell and getting a bad infection in his foot, according to ABC News4. After a visit to the emergency room, docs determined he had been infected with vibrio — a potentially deadly bacteria.

But that’s not the only germ lurking in the salt and sand. Gizmodo shared the following pathogens you’ll want to steer clear of as the weather gets warmer.

Vibrio

There are about a dozen types of vibrio bacteria that can cause an illness in people called vibriosis. The bacteria lives in coastal waters and becomes more prevalent between May and October when the temperature climbs, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

If the bacteria enters the body through an open wound, it can cause a flesh-eating infection. People can also get sick from vibrio found in raw shellfish, and the bacteria took the lives of one New Yorker and two Connecticut residents last summer. Symptoms can include diarrhea, stomach cramps, vomiting, fever and chills.

“While rare, the vibrio bacterium has unfortunately made it to this region and can be extraordinarily dangerous,” Hochul said in a press release issued in August.

“As we investigate further, it is critical that all New Yorkers stay vigilant and take responsible precautions to keep themselves and their loved ones safe, including protecting open wounds from seawater and for those with compromised immune systems, avoiding raw or undercooked shellfish which may carry the bacteria.”

MRSA

Nothing ruins a sunny day like a case of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, commonly known as MRSA. MRSA is an infection caused by a staph bacteria that’s resistant to several antibiotics used to treat other kinds of staph infections, the Mayo Clinic explained. 

Studies have found that the sand and water on beaches and lakes can host MRSA bacteria.

Symptoms of MRSA typically start with swollen and painful red bums that look like pimples, are warm to the touch, filled with pus and accompanied by a fever. The bumps can turn to abscesses that need draining. The infection can spread to the bloodstream, lungs, heart, bones and joints and can become life-threatening.

E. Coli

Escherichia coli bacteria, commonly known as E.coli, can live normally in the intestines and some E.coli is harmless. However, some strains can cause symptoms like stomach cramps, vomiting and bloody diarrhea, according to Mayo Clinic.

Some strains of E. coli can cause more serious disease and kidney damage, and in rare cases, it can be fatal, especially in people with weakened immune systems.

People can get E. coli from contaminated food, but it can also be found at freshwater lakes and beaches due to runoff from storms and sewer-treatment sites, Gizmodo explained.

Over half of New York beaches are contaminated by poop and sewage, according to a shocking report issued by Environment America last summer.