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As the weather heats up and thoughts turn to swimming and cooling off in the pool, the Water Quality & Health Council highlights a contradictory finding from their recent swimmer hygiene survey. They discovered that 44 percent of American Adults skip the shower before entering a swimming pool.
For decades, public health authorities have recommended the pre-swim shower. Showering before swimming helps keep swimming healthy for everyone in the pool. Yet, only 32 percent of respondents surveyed say they always shower before swimming. To help “connect the dots” on this issue for summertime swimmers keep on reading! This blog covers the “whys” behind showering before swimming.
A thorough shower with soap helps remove perspiration, body oils, cosmetics and traces of urine and fecal matter on the body. Sending those substances down the shower drain goes a long way toward reducing the “yuck factor” for everyone who shares the pool, but there is much more to consider.
The pre-swim shower helps minimize the irritating smell formed by pool water when impurities from the bodies of swimmers combine with chlorine. Many people associate that strong “chlorine” smell as an indicator of a clean pool. When in fact that stringent odor is not from chlorine, but from when chlorine reacts with impurities. A well-managed pool has no strong chemical smell.
Neglecting to take a pre-swim shower also puts you and other swimmers at risk for Recreation Swimming Illnesses (RWIs). According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), RWIs can cause gastrointestinal, skin, ear, respiratory, eye, neurologic and wound infections. The most common sign of a RWI? Diarrhea.
Now that you know what can happen if organic material from swimmers’ bodies gets into the pool water, it should not surprise you that it’s a good idea to shower after exiting the pool. Showering will get rid of the chlorine and any foreign agents you may have picked up from the pool. Make sure to rinse your hair thoroughly and wash your swimsuit afterwards as well.
Showering after you swim will keep your skin from becoming dry. You don’t have to worry about picking up any germs, and you’ll get rid of that chlorine smell. It only takes a few minutes to shower, so make sure you make it a priority. You shower after jogging or lifting weights — think of swimming in the same way! Just because you’re in water doesn’t mean you’re not working up a sweat.
When in doubt, give us a call at Terry’s Plumbing! As your reputable plumber in Pittsburgh, we can help you with your plumbing-related issues. Call today at 412-364-9114.
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