Toxin in F ish Possibly the Cause of Fatal Sicknesses

After doing some research based on a hunch, neurologist Elijah Stommel uncovered that most victims of a rare but deadly diagnosis, ALS, lived near bodies of water, indicating that something in the water could be causing this sickness. Stommel found that a particular toxin called beta-methylamino-L-alanine (BMAA) produced by a bacteria called cyanobacteria is ingested by fish and other aquatic life in lakes, ponds, and oceans, then caught and eaten by humans—and possibly causing ALS. Scientists have discovered that cyanobacteria have been increasing in numbers, and this alarming fact has teams of scientists all over the world researching these bacteria. Scientists have also linked BMAA to Alzheimer’s in many medical cases and when investigated, they found the results astounding, as well as frightening. Fish have been tested for BMAA and many of them contain quite a high amount, such as a blue crab with 7,000 parts per million of the toxin. Possible solutions to this problem are keeping a closer eye on the fish sent to markets to be eaten, as well as keeping fresh and salt water cleaner. Barriers to these solutions are the lack of funding as well as the reluctance of seafood-lovers to cut back on fish that may or may not cause a very rare, fatal sickness (ALS only occurs in about 2 out of 100,000 people) and laziness as far as not dumping used car oil into drains on the side of the road or other similar bad (and ignorant) habits. My opinion is that scientists should continue to investigate the cause of ALS and Alzheimer’s as well as testing fish for BMAA and pushing for support from environmentalists and government officials for funding and educating people about this.