• Suitable for ALLAges

Germs in swimming pools

By Child and Youth Health
 
 

Swimming pools can be lots of fun and a great way to cool down. Unfortunately, people can get sick from germs they pick up from pool water, especially if the pool water isn’t properly cleaned and maintained.

Health problems from pool water

Recreational water illnesses are spread by swimming in contaminated water, and are caused by several different types of germs. These include bacteria (cryptosporidium, giardia, E. coli and shigella), viruses (entero-viruses) and amoebae.

The chemicals in pools are very effective in quickly killing most of the germs that find their way into the water. But sometimes the germs aren’t killed quickly enough, and possibly harmful germs can be spread. This is more common when many people use a pool.

Bacteria from the poo of people who are unwell – especially if they have diarrhoea (runny poo) – can cause illness if the germs are swallowed with pool water. Other bacteria can cause ear, eye, throat and chest infections. Viruses can cause a range of illnesses, including gastroenteritis, eye, ear and skin infections, and hepatitis A. Rarely, amoebae can cause a form of meningitis, which can be fatal.

People can also get health problems, such as eye and skin irritation, if the pool chlorine levels are too high or too low, or if the water temperature is too high or too low.

How pool water gets contaminated

If people with diarrhoea go swimming, germs might get into the water because the germs will be on their skin. This can happen even if they’ve cleaned their bottoms well and have thoroughly washed their hands. If a young child who isn’t toilet trained has diarrhoea, it’s quite likely the child will poo in the water.

If an unwell child’s nappy is changed on the ground or on a table near the pool, it’s possible the germs will get onto the surfaces and be carried into the pool.

If a person has any other health problem, such as an eye infection, the germs causing this infection can also get into the water.

When you go swimming, you share the water with everyone in the pool.

Killing the germs

If the pool water is correctly treated with chlorine, the chlorine will kill the germs – but it does take time. Some bacteria will be killed within an hour. Other bacteria, such as cryptosporidium, can stay in the water for a couple of days. It can take longer for viruses to be killed than for bacteria, whereas amoebae will be killed if the water is correctly chlorinated. If the water contains solids such as leaf litter, it can take longer to kill germs.

People can get sick after swimming in even the best maintained pools, especially if lots of people use the pool in a short time. Pools that aren’t maintained well can contain a lot of illness-causing germs.

Public wading pools

Wading pools are the most likely pools to have large numbers of germs, because they’re mainly used by children who aren’t reliably toilet trained. Wading pools are also shallower and warmer, with less water, which makes them more easily contaminated.

Because young children tend to swallow water, wading pools can often be the source of infections and illnesses.

Home wading pools

The little play pools that people have at home and fill with water from the hose are great in summer, but can pose as many risks to your child’s health as public pools. Home wading pools don’t have enough chlorine in their water to stop germs from multiplying, so it’s important to remind your child to avoid getting water in his mouth.

The pool should be emptied straight after use, because the water is also a drowning hazard for children if it’s left out without close adult supervision.

If your child goes to the toilet or poos her nappy in the pool, clear everyone out of the pool, empty its water, and clean its surfaces. If diarrhoea causes the pool’s contamination, dry the pool in the sun for at least four hours after cleaning it to make it safe again.

How to reduce the risk

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the USA devised the ‘PLEAs’ tips to help protect people from recreational water illness, and to help stop germs from getting into pools in the first place.

‘PLEAs’ for all swimmers

  • Please don’t swim when you have diarrhoea (runny poo). This is especially important for kids in nappies. You can spread germs in the water and make other people sick. (Babies still in nappies can’t stop the poo coming out, and they shouldn’t be in the pool.) 
  • Please don’t swallow pool water. In fact, avoid getting water in your mouth.
  • Please practise good hygiene. Take a shower before swimming and wash your hands after using the toilet or changing nappies. Germs on your body end up in the water.

‘PLEAs’ for parents of young kids

  • Please take your child to the toilet regularly or check nappies often. Waiting to hear ‘I have to go’ might mean it’s too late. 
  • Please change nappies in a bathroom and not next to the pool. Germs can spread to surfaces and objects in and around the pool and spread illness. 
  • Please wash your child thoroughly (especially her bottom) with soap and water before swimming. Everyone has invisible bits of poo on their bottoms, which ends up in the pool.

‘PLEAs’ for general water safety

  • Please remember to keep an eye on your child at all times. Kids can drown in seconds and in silence. 
  • Please protect your child against sunburn (sunsmart swimwear, clothes, hats and sunscreen). 
  • Please don’t use air-filled swimming aids (such as water wings) with children in place of life jackets or life preservers.

(Adapted from ‘Healthy Swimming Brochure’, updated)