Human, Bird, or Dog Waste? Scientists Parsing Poop To Aid DC’s Forgotten River
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KFF Health News Peggy Girshman reporting fellow Jackie Fortiér joined a boat tour to spotlight a review of microbes in the Anacostia River, a step toward making the river healthier and swimmable. The story was featured on WAMU’s “Health Hub” on Feb. 26.
On a bright October day, high schoolers from Francis L. Cardozo Education Campus piled into a boat on the Anacostia River in Washington, D.C. Most had never been on the water before.
Their guide, Trey Sherard of the Anacostia Riverkeeper, started the tour with a well-rehearsed safety talk. The nonprofit advocates for the protection of the river.
A boy with tousled black hair casually dipped his fingers in the water.
“Don’t touch it!” Sherard yelled.
Why was Sherard being so stern? Was it dangerously cold? Were there biting fish?
Because of the sewage.
“We get less sewage than we used to. Sewage is a code word for what?” Sherard asked the teenagers.
“Poop!” one student piped up.
“Human poop,” Sherard said. “Notice I didn’t say we get none. I said we get what? Less.”
Tours like this are designed to get young people interested in the river’s ecology, but it’s a fine line to tread — interacting with the water can make people sick. Because of the health risks, swimming hasn’t been legal in the Anacostia for more than half a century. The polluted water can cause gastrointestinal and respiratory illnesses, as well as eye, nose, and skin infections.
The river is the cleanest it’s been in years, according to environmental experts, but they still advise you not to take a dip in the Anacostia — not yet, at least.
About 40 million people in the U.S. live in a community with a combined sewer system, where wastewater and stormwater flow through the same pipes. When pipe capacities are reached after heavy rains, the overflow sends raw wastewater into the rivers instead of to a treatment plant.
Federal regulations, including sections of the Clean Water Act, require municipalities such as Washington to reduce at least 85% of this pollution or face steep fines.
To achieve compliance, Washington launched a $2.6 billion infrastructure project in 2011. DC Water’s Clean Rivers Project will eventually build multiple miles-long underground storage basins to capture stormwater and wastewater and pump it to treatment plants once heavy rains have subsided.
The Anacostia tunnel is the first of these storage basins to be completed. It can collect 190 million gallons of bacteria-laden wastewater for later treatment, said Moussa Wone, vice president of the Clean Rivers Project.
Climate change is causing more intense rainstorms in Washington, so even after construction is complete in 2030, Wone said, untreated stormwater will be discharged into the river, though much less frequently.
“On the Anacostia, we’re going to be reducing the frequency of overflows from 82 to two in an average year,” Wone said.
But while the Anacostia sewershed covers 176 square miles, he noted, only 17% is in Washington.
“The other 83% is outside the district,” Wone said. “We can do our part, but everybody else has to do their part also.”
Upstream in Maryland’s Montgomery and Prince George’s counties, miles of sewer lines are in the process of being upgraded to divert raw sewage to a treatment plant instead of the river.
The data shows that poop is a problem for river health — but knowing what kind of poop it is matters. Scientists monitor E. coli to indicate the presence of feces in river water, but since the bacteria live in the guts of most warm-blooded animals, the source is difficult to determine.
“Is it human feces? Or is it deer? Is it gulls’? Is it dogs’?” said Amy Sapkota, a professor of environmental and occupational health at the University of Maryland.
Bacterial levels can fluctuate across the river even without rainstorms. An Anacostia Riverkeeper report found that in 2023 just three of nine sites sampled along the Washington portion of the watershed had consistently low E. coli levels throughout the summer season.
Sapkota is heading a new bacterial monitoring program measuring the amount of E. coli that different animal species deposit along the river.
The team uses microbial source tracking to analyze samples of river water taken from different locations each month by volunteers. The molecular approach enables scientists to target specific gene sequences associated with fecal bacteria and determine whether the bacteria come from humans or wildlife. Microbial source tracking also measures fecal pollution levels by source.
“We can quantify the levels of different bacterial targets that may be coming from a human fecal source or an animal fecal source,” Sapkota said.
Her team expects to have preliminary results this year.
The health risk to humans from river water will never be zero, Sapkota said, but based on her team’s research, smart city planning and retooled infrastructure could lessen the level of harmful bacteria in the water.
“Let’s say that we’re finding that actually there’s a lot of deer fecal signatures in our results,” Sapkota said. “Maybe this points to the fact that we need more green buffers along the river that can help prevent fecal contaminants from wildlife from entering the river during stormwater events.”
Washington is hoping to recoup some of the cost of building green spaces and other river cleanup. In January, the office of D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb filed a lawsuit seeking unspecified damages from the federal government over decades of alleged pollution of the Anacostia River.
Brenda Lee Richardson, coordinator of the Anacostia Parks & Community Collaborative, said the efforts to cut down on trash and sewage are paying off. She sees a river on the mend, with more plant and animal life sprouting up.
“The ecosystem seems a lot greener,” she said. “There’s stuff in the river now that wasn’t there before.”
But any changes to the waterfront need to be done with residents of both sides of the river in mind, she said.
“We want there to be some sense of equity as it relates to who has access,” she said. “When I look at who is recreating, it’s not people who look like me.”
Richardson has lived for 40 years in Ward 8 — a predominantly Black area on the east side of the river whose residents are generally less affluent than those on the west side. She and her neighbors don’t consider the Anacostia a place to get out and play, she said.
As the water quality slowly improves, Richardson said, she hopes the Anacostia’s reputation is also rehabilitated. Even if it’s not safe to swim in, Richardson enjoys boating trips like the one with the Anacostia Riverkeeper.
“To see all those creatures along the way and the greenery. It was comforting,” she said. “So rather than take a pill to settle my nerves, I can just go down the river.”
KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF—an independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. Learn more about KFF.
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This article first appeared on KFF Health News and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
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Shoulder Mobility Hack (Measurable Results In 60 Seconds)
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Mobility usually improves with time and consistency, but there’s a quick hack that can enhance shoulder mobility in about 60 seconds:
Nerve-Gliding
This one’s a very specific technique, so we’re going to break it down a bit more than we usually do when talking about exercises.
First, assess your baseline mobility:
- Record yourself from the side.
- Lift your arm straight up with your palm facing inward.
- Keep your ribs down* and avoid arching your back.
- Make a note of your range, and any sensations.
*if you’re reading this and thinking “where else would my ribs go?”, if you try it you’ll understand
Radial nerve glide (back of arm to thumb):
- Start with your arm down, shoulder depressed.
- Internally rotate your arm (palm facing back/side).
- Flex your wrist (like accepting something being passed to you stealthily from behind).
- Lift your arm out and tilt your head in the opposite direction.
- Perform the nerve glide itself by straightening your wrist and head, then return.
- Repeat 10 times.
Musculocutaneous nerve glide (front of arm):
- Make a fist and depress your shoulder.
- Rock your wrist forwards/backwards, then hold it tilted back.
- Take your arm behind your back, extending your shoulder.
- Tilt your head to the opposite side.
- Perform the nerve glide itself by straightening your wrist and head, then return.
- Repeat 10 times.
For more on all of this plus—of course—visual demonstrations, enjoy:
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Lychees vs Strawberries – Which is Healthier?
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Our Verdict
When comparing lychees to strawberries, we picked the strawberries.
Why?
Strawberries enjoy modest to strong wins in each category:
In terms of macros, lychees have more carbs, while strawberries have more fiber, winning.
In the category of vitamins, lychees have more of vitamins B2, B3, B6, and C, while strawberries have more of vitamins A, B1, B7, B9, E, and K, winning this round too.
Looking at minerals, lychees have more copper, phosphorus, potassium, and selenium, while strawberries have more calcium, iron, magnesium, manganese, and zinc, once gain winning.
In other considerations, strawberries have more polyphenols, which is one more win.
Adding up the sections makes for a clear overall in for strawberries, but do enjoy either or both, as diversity is best!
Want to learn more?
You might like:
Are You Getting The Right Kinds Of Flavonoids?
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Celery vs Rhubarb – Which is Healthier?
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Our Verdict
When comparing celery to rhubarb, we picked the rhubarb.
Why?
In terms of macros, rhubarb has more carbs and fiber, the ratio of which give it the lower glycemic index, though both are low glycemic index foods. This means we’re calling this category a very marginal win for rhubarb, but a first-round win nevertheless!
In the category of vitamins, celery has more of vitamins A, B5, B6, and B9, while rhubarb has more vitamin C. A win for celery, this time.
Looking at minerals next, celery has more copper and phosphorus, while rhubarb has more calcium, iron, magnesium, manganese, potassium, and selenium. This one’s a clear win for rhubarb.
In other considerations, rhubarb has more polyphenols in not only in terms of overall quantity, but also in terms of “more useful to humans” too, being rich in an assortment of flavanols while celery must make do with some furanocoumarins (not in dangerous quantities, though).
Adding up the sections make for a clear overall win for rhubarb, but by all means do enjoy either or both, as diversity is best!
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Top 5 Exercises For Hip Mobility
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Do more with less:
Let’s open things up…
Hip mobility exercises will, by default, be hip-opening exercises. The criteria used by mobility coach Liv Townsend to qualify these top 5 exercises are:
- improves both strength and range of motion
- these are the qualifying characteristics for a mobility exercise; if an exercise improves only one or the other, then it’s just a strength exercise or just a flexibility exercise
- is accessible from almost any starting point
- realistically, rather than “if you can’t do the vertical splits while balancing on one leg, start by doing the vertical splits against the wall” (yes, that’s a real piece of advice this writer saw in the wild one time)
- can be progressively loaded or deepened
- because otherwise we would get very limited benefits from it, so this characteristic is necessary too
- delivers high value by working multiple muscles
- because frankly, we have a lot of muscles, and working them all individually would take a lot longer than most of us have time to commit
With these criteria in mind, here are 5 exercises that do all those things, and do them well:
- Bulgarian split squat: ranks highest for accessibility, progression, strength, and mobility, improving hip extension in your back leg, hip flexion and internal-rotation stability in your front leg, and stretching your glutes, quads, and hip flexors through deep ranges, with balance easily assisted if needed.
- Lateral squat: delivers high value by improving mobility and strength in your glutes, quads, adductors, hamstrings, and ankles, emphasizes inner-thigh mobility and external hip rotation, and progresses with depth or load, but can be less accessible due to common form challenges.
- Single-leg Romanian deadlift: combines hamstring lengthening with strength through your full hinge range, is accessible at any flexibility level, and progresses easily with load, but ranks lower because it mainly targets a single mobility area.
- Squat: develops quad strength and stretches your quads and hip flexors on descent, is broadly accessible and scalable with depth, blocks, or bands, but offers lower overall value because it lacks hip rotation and minimal posterior-chain involvement.
- Shin box: builds strength and flexibility through internal and external hip rotation, strengthens your glutes on the lift, stretches your hip flexors and adductors at the top, and is easily progressed with load, but loses points for accessibility due to required internal rotation and starting-position demands.
For more on all of this, plus visual demonstrations, enjoy:
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You might also like:
The Most Underrated Hip Mobility Exercise (Not Stretching)
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- improves both strength and range of motion
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Dietitian Explains: Why Disordered Eating Happens In Midlife
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Dr. Ruth Machin hosts dietician Lorelei Sturm, to talk about a very widespread but little talked-about issue:
Change is the opposite of stability
First things first, about disordered eating vs eating disorders: an eating disorder is a diagnosable mental health condition, while disordered eating refers to unhealthy or inconsistent eating patterns that may or may not develop into an eating disorder.
It may seem a pedantic quibble, but it’s actually useful to be able to separate a non-ideal behavior from a more baked-in problem.
- Disordered eating patterns can include: skipping meals, going long periods without eating, cutting out entire food groups without a scientifically sound plan, eating chaotically, or having an overall unbalanced diet.
- Warning signs of an eating disorder can include: persistent fear of weight gain, an intense drive for thinness, obsessive thoughts about food, compulsive calorie counting, anxiety around eating, and avoiding social situations involving food. In particular, eating alone or in secret, hiding food, binge-eating, purging, or other extreme eating behaviors generally indicate an eating disorder.
With that in mind, what’s this about midlife?
Hormonal changes commonly alter body shape, making it unrealistic to expect a 55-year-old body to resemble a 25-year-old one. Yes, it can be done by some people, but there are many factors involved, some of which are modifiable and some of which aren’t, and while healthy eating and healthy lifestyle changes are certainly worthwhile, they do not guarantee weight loss because like we say, there are a lot more factors than just that.
Consequently, many women spend years learning to accept their bodies, only to face new insecurities when menopause changes their shape again, and to make matters worse for this generation than ones before, GLP-1 weight-loss drugs broadly increase pressure on women who choose not to use them but still feel they should achieve similar results through dieting.
For more on all of this including what to do about it in yourself or a loved one, enjoy:
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You might also like:
Eating Disorders: More Varied (And Prevalent) Than People Think
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How Immunity Really Works & Why Certain People Keep Getting Sick
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Dr. Ashley Froese explains how it’s mostly not about “boosting” the immune system:
What makes the biggest difference
For most people most of the time, immune systems usually don’t fail because they are weak, but rather, they fail because they become confused, exhausted, or distracted. For this reason, “boosting” is usually the wrong framing.
In few words: immune dysfunction is more often about regulation, energy, and focus rather than raw strength.
- The first breakdown is immune confusion. Rather than being weak, the immune system can lose its ability to tell what is dangerous and what is harmless. Chronic stress signals such as elevated cortisol, poor sleep, and inflammatory eating patterns keep the system constantly activated, like a smoke alarm that goes off every time you so much as think about making toast. Over time, this incessant immune activation wastes resources, fuels chronic inflammation or autoimmune reactions, and makes the immune response less effective when a real infection appears.
- The second breakdown is immune exhaustion. Immune responses require large amounts of cellular energy, particularly ATP produced by your mitochondria. When energy is depleted by chronic stress and inflammation, infections linger, recovery slows, and dormant viruses can reactivate. Blood tests may even come back normal, but the immune system lacks the energy to deploy its strongest defenses, much like a phone that shuts down battery-heavy functions when its battery is nearly empty.
- The third breakdown is immune distraction. This one builds on from the previous two, and occurs because even with enough energy, the immune system can fail if it is constantly responding to background problems instead of true threats. A damaged gut barrier is a common example, allowing toxins, bacteria, and food fragments to leak into the bloodstream and continuously trigger immune activity. This constant cleanup diverts attention away from exogenous pathogens, allowing viruses and other infections to slip in and take hold, while the immune system is busy managing ongoing internal battles.
So, what to do about this?
- Reduce chronic inflammation to negligible (e.g. eat an anti-inflammatory diet, and don’t take recreational inflammatory substances like alcohol)
- Get adequate rest. Not just sleep, but also just relaxing downtime. This is important too, for your body to receive the signal “it is safe to spend some resources on maintenance, because we are not in crisis mode”.
- Look after your more general health, including prioritizing gut health, since a lot of things (good or bad) start there. We sometimes say you can’t have good brain health without good heart health, and that’s true, but you can’t have either without good gut health.
For more on all of this, enjoy:
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Want to learn more?
You might also like:
Why Some People Get Sick More (And How To Not Be One Of Them) ← for a very prophylactic approach
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