NHS Lothian is urging anyone who has been at North Berwick's West Beach to wash "as soon as possible after exposure".

The advice comes after high levels of bacteria were found in tests by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), incidating "faecal contamination" at the beach.

Dr Janet Stevenson, consultant in public health medicine at NHS Lothian, said: "We have been made aware that high levels of bacteria in the sea water, indicating faecal contamination, have been recorded.

“Anyone who has recently been in contact with water at this beach should wash with warm, soapy water as soon as possible after exposure and, if you have any concerns, you should contact your GP.”

“NHS Lothian would advise against all bathing, paddling or playing in the sea or streams running into the sea at North Berwick Beach West at this time."

Meanwhile, East Lothian Council is working alongside SEPA to establish the source of the contamination.

A spokeswoman for the local authority said: "We are working closely with SEPA to monitor the water quality at West Beach.

"SEPA are also liaising with Scottish Water to establish the source of the contamination and we hope to have the situation rectified as soon as possible.

"We echo the public health warning from NHS Lothian and are urging people to comply with the advisory signage in place at the beach."

Dr Stevenson stressed that the issue was a localised one, adding: "Other beaches in North Berwick are unaffected."

Swimming in contaminated sea water can cause a range of illnesses, from gastrointestinal (digestive tract) and respiratory infections, to ear, nose and throat complaints.

Meanwhile, North Berwick Kayak Hire has been forced to temporarily close "for the next few days", as a result of the contaminated water.

Liam Lamb, who runs the kayak hire, said: "We don't want to turn people away but due to the risk of illness from the water we will not be hiring for the next few days. Keeping our paddlers safe if our main priority.

"As a business that relies on good water quality we need this to get sorted as soon as possible."

He added that coaching sessions would instead be run in East Linton over the weekend.