Hazards of horse manure?

On 14 Nov 2005 22:16:14 -0800, "
wrote:

Here in the US, we always say to travelers to Mexico, don't drink the
water, or drinks with ice in them. If you do the odds of a bad case of
diareah is over 50%. Any contaminated water on your bottle is the same
situation, a very good chance of getting sick.

There's a reason mountain bikers go for the camelbak and it ain't just the
ability to drink while riding rough terrain.

Ron




wrote:
I will eventually get better, none the wiser as to whether splattered
manure on my bottle is a hazard worth avoiding.

VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV
If the chance for infection is of lotto magnitude,
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

I won't bother with wasting time
finding bottles with caps, or risking crashing by wiping the bottles
and eyeing them for crud everytime I drink instead of watching where I
am going. But perhaps it is not.

I've lost 6 kg in the last 3 days, and if I am not improving by
tommorrow I will go see a doctor, which may help my current situation,
but it is prevention I am really interested in.

Joseph

wrote:
Hi all,

The weather has turned sloppy and I find myself riding on bike paths
and trails that have at times large quantitlies of horse manure on
them. Mixed in with a primordial soup of rotten leaves, dead worms,
road grime, and other sundries. Since it has been raining for weeks now
there is spray everywhere and some of this manure ends up on my water
bottle and presumably in my mouth.

How much effort should I put into not consuming trace amounts of
manure? What are the potential infections, etc one risks in such a
situation? I ask this becuse I have been quite ill for 3 days now and
have not eaten anything that was not also eaten by my family, nor have
I been anywhere they have not been, besides on wet sloppy rides, and
they are fine.

Thanks!

Joseph


I wondered about drinking from the nozzle too since it is exposed to
dirt and dust even on a dry day. I wash my bottle out with dishwashing
soap and keep it clean and also unscrew the lid and drink from the
bottle rather than the nozzle. Can't drink on the go that way, but I
drink at stoplights and other breaks anyway.

catzz66 wrote:

I wash my bottle out with dishwashing soap
Maybe traces of soap are harmful too? The less the human body is exposed to
bacteria, the less the immune system is able to handle pathogenes.

I have been drinking from water bottles for years now without ever getting a
disease from it. I also drank water from wells in nature and have eaten
many cheeses made of raw milk without ever falling ill thereafter. I'm not
saying one should eat horse manure, but hygiene shouldn't rule your life
either. Sure there is a slim chance you get a disease while eating or
drinking, but life isn't without risks. In fact: life is a fatal disease.

Greets, Derk

On Tue, 15 Nov 2005 11:32:44 +0100, Derk wrote:

wrote:

What part of a medical education involves forcing folks to wait in
confined spaces with other sick folks and to pay for dubious services?

Do you all live in Holland?

No, they live on planet earth. That's both a necessary and sufficient
condition to get that kind of medical care.

Jasper

Derk wrote:

Maybe traces of soap are harmful too?

You are not going to get three days of diarrhoea from not perfectly
rinsing out the soap from your water bottle.

The less the human body is exposed to
bacteria, the less the immune system is able to handle pathogenes.

More accurately: if the body is exposed to insufficient pathogens, the
immune system will be sub-par.

I have been drinking fro m water bottles for years now without ever getting a
disease from it. I also drank water from wells in nature and have eaten
many cheeses made of raw milk without ever falling ill thereafter. I'm not
saying one should eat horse manure, but hygiene s houldn't rule your life
either. Sure there is a slim chance you get a disease while eating or
drinking, but life isn't without risks. In fact: life is a fatal disease.

That means your well was not contaminated with Giardia and your cheeses
were properly made, with beneficial bacteria that crowd out the
pathogenic ones. Ingest the wrong bacteria or protozoans or fungi or
viruses, such as are commonly found in manure, and good luck, you'll
need it..-

41 wrote:

Ingest the wrong bacteria or protozoans or fungi or
viruses, such as are commonly found in manure, and good luck, you'll
need it..-
I usually try to avoid eating manure.


A few weeks ago people got E. Coli from eating contaminated meat in France,
so my point is that life is full of risks and of course one should try to
limit these risks, but it shouldn't become an obsession. When you fall ill,
you just consult a doctor and hope you'll get better.

The contaminated french meat story:
http://www.invs.sante.fr/presse/2005...ur/chu_311005/

Greets, Derk

I can inform you that after riding through LOADS of horse manure today, I
got a flat tire and had to change the filthy tire while I still have a few
wounds from repair jobs on my hands. Luckily I asked for a tetanus shot
some time ago!

Greets, Derk

Derk wrote:
I can inform you that after riding through LOADS of horse manure today, I
got a flat tire and had to change the filthy tire while I still have a few
wounds from repair jobs on my hands. Luckily I asked for a tetanus shot
some time ago!

Greets, Derk

http://www.nfid.org/factsheets/tetanusadult.html

"FACT: Approximately 11% of reported cases of tetanus are fatal. In the
U.S., where 50 or fewer cases of tetanus occur each year, deaths are
more likely to occur in persons 60 years of age and older."

I'll take my chances.

richard wrote:
CamelBak used to use this as their ad campaign. Even with a lack of
manure, there is still auto droppings (oils, etc) that get sprayed onto
the bottle. Use a hydration pack on wet roads!

Fenders work better. If you ride in a group you eat a lot of rooster
tail anyway.

CamelBaks are OK for hiking, they're really useless for cycling where
you have such convenient places to put bottles. Besides, they're so 90's.

Peter Cole wrote:
I'll take my chances.
I think you're right about that. The chances of being killed by a motorist
are far greater than dying of tetanus. I got my tetanus shot after a very
nasty poisonous snake bite in France. Now I'm happy they gave me that
tetanus shot, since it's reassuring. I won't let fear rule my life, however
and keep drinking from my water bottle !

Greetings, Derk