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Diarrhea and Swimming | Healthy Swimming | Healthy Water | CDC [cdc.gov]:

When someone swallows contaminated recreational water—water in pools, hot tubs, water playgrounds, or oceans, lakes, and rivers— they can get sick with diarrhea. In fact, diarrhea is the most common illness spread through recreational water.

Which germs in recreational water cause diarrhea?

Diarrhea can be caused by germs such as Crypto (short for Cryptosporidium [cdc.gov]), Giardia [cdc.gov], Shigella [cdc.gov], norovirus [cdc.gov], and E. coli O157:H7 [cdc.gov]. Some of these germs can survive in properly chlorinated water for almost an hour, or even days.

How do germs that cause diarrhea spread in recreational water?

Tiny amounts of poop are rinsed off swimmers’ bottoms as they swim through the water. If someone with infectious diarrhea (which can contain up to one billion germs) gets in recreational water, germs can be washed off their bottom and contaminate the water. These germs can make someone else sick if they swallow even a small amount of contaminated water.

In public pools, water playgrounds, and hot tubs, disinfection of the water (with chlorine or bromine) and filtration work together to help kill germs. Chlorine and bromine kill most germs within minutes, and filters remove debris (e.g., leaves, sticks), which use up the needed chlorine or bromine. Swimmers may still be exposed to germs during the time it takes for the chlorine or bromine to the kill germs or for the water to be recycled through filters. And certain germs, like Crypto, can stay alive for days, even in pools with proper filtration and disinfection.

Many facilities use one filtration system for multiple pools, which causes water from multiple pools to mix. This means germs from one person’s body could contaminate the water in multiple pools.

How do I protect myself and those I care about?

We all share the water we swim, play, or relax in, so each of us plays a key role in helping to protect ourselves, our families, and our friends from germs that can cause diarrhea.

Original Submission