Owing to a recent death, Riverside County health officials issued a warning advising residents to take into account precautions measures when swimming in bodies of water used for bathing or water-based recreations, in order to reduce the risk of exposure to a parasite called Naegleria fowleri.

Naegleria fowleri is a free living amoeba, usually found in warm freshwater, which enters the human body through the nose, invading and attacking the human nervous system. The cases are rare, but the infection damages the brain so much that it typically triggers to death. The infections are more frequent in the hot summer months but aren’t contagious.
 
A Lake Elsinore boy passed away after he was infected by the parasite. According to the Tuesday announcement of the Riverside County Department of Public Health, the child swam in Lake Elsinore several times during this summer but health officials couldn’t establish where he acquired the life form.

"The risk of infection is extremely low and is no different in Lake Elsinore than in any other warm-water lake," stated Eric Frykman, Riverside County's public health officer. This was the first confirmed death caused by the parasite in Riverside County, California.

Between 1988 and 2007, no less than 33 cases were reported in the U.S.  Diarrhea, fever, nausea, vomiting and stomach cramps count among the symptoms. Experts strongly advise people with those symptoms to immediately seek medical care.

Riverside County Public Health Director Eric Frykman urged individuals to avoid water when temperatures are high and water levels are low, to hold the nose shut or use nose clips while taking part in water-related activities and to avoid digging or stirring up sediment while in shallow freshwater areas.