Swimming pool diseases and ways to prevent
Swimming pool diseases and ways to prevent
For many, the clear blue water of swimming pools seems very tempting, especially on hot days, despite this, the Centers for Disease Control warns that there are many dangers lurking in swimming pools, for example, the bacterium Cryptosporidium, which causes diarrhea, where its prevalence increases by 13% every year .
And it’s not just Cryptosporidium that swimmers should be wary of, according to the Centers for Disease Control, there are 493 types of bacteria and parasites circulating in swimming pools in addition to chemicals, and these substances may cause significant damage that may lead to death, for example in June In 2019, about 50 people were poisoned by chlorine gas after a public swimming pool pump broke down in the US state of Utah, and the pump released a large amount of chlorine, and the local police described this incident as strange.
Bacteria germs in the pool
Among the diseases that spread due to swimming pools, Cryptosporidium bacteria come in the first place, as they are responsible for 58% of diseases transmitted through swimming pools, and they cause diarrhea for up to 3 weeks, while Pseudomonas bacteria are responsible for 13% of infections and are a type of Bacteria is responsible for hot tub rash (a type of rash) and swimmer’s ear infection.
16% of infections are caused by Legionella bacteria, which causes a milder, flu-like illness called Pontiac fever. Because Cryptosporidium bacteria are so resistant to chlorine, they are very hard to kill even with chlorine in water. Swallowing even a small amount of Cryptosporidium-containing aquarium water can make children and adults sick, says Michelle Helsa, head of the CDC’s Healthy Swimming Program. For several weeks with watery diarrhea, stomach cramps, vomiting and nausea.” Each year, 15-20% of diarrhea cases are associated with swimming in public baths.
Chlorine in the swimming pool
When entering a public swimming pool, some consider the smell of chlorine emitted from the pool as a green light to jump straight into the pool because it is clean, and in fact the opposite is true.
“Pools that are well treated with chlorine do not emit a strong odor,” says Mary Ostrovsky, senior director for chlorine elimination at the American Chemistry Council. an irritant called chloramine.”
Chloramine is responsible for the strong smell that hits your nose when you approach the bathroom, and this substance is responsible for the redness of the swimmer’s eyes and the feeling of itching in them, and it also causes irritation to the nose and skin. Therefore, the acidity and chlorine levels in swimming pools must be constantly tested, because increased levels of chloramate cause irritation in the eyes, skin and nose, and lowering it than the required level leads to the spread of germs such as Cryptosporidium, E. coli and Giardia.
How to stay safe in the pool
Of course, we cannot avoid bathing in swimming pools, especially with high temperatures, but there are several tips that you must adhere to to avoid infection as much as possible, including:
- Do not swim or let your children swim in public pools if they have diarrhoea, allow them time to recover so that they do not harm others.
- Use test strips to check the water’s pH and degree of chlorination. You can buy test kits online.
- Try as much as possible not to swallow the aquarium water.
- Take a shower before going into the pool.
- Always listen to the sound of the pool pump.
- Take young children to the toilet several times during swimming time