Water Parks Michigan

Most people don't shower before swimming in a public pool

KUSA - Just about all of us take a shower after hitting the pool, but a new study may make you reconsider showering before also.

A new national poll conducted by the University of Michigan asked 865 parents with children 5 to 12 years old that had recently been to a pool, questions about basic water park and pool risks and rules.

It turns out that most parents say they often ignore the recommended pre-swim showers. Only 26 percent of those polled felt it was important to shower before getting into the water. Only 15 percent of those same parents felt there was a high risk of children getting sick from pool water. At the same time, 64 percent felt it was very important for children not to swallow water at water parks.

Remember, those signs about showering before swimming are posted for a reason. Showering before you swim can help keep "recreational water illnesses" instances down. Also, it turns out that rinsing off before getting into the water is not just about preventing germs.

A 2010 study by the University of Illinois found when people get into the pool with their make-up or sunscreen on, or if they urinate in the pool, these substances mix with the pools disinfectants. When the mixing happens, the water becomes what researchers call "toxic." Long-term exposure to the resulting chemicals may mutate genes, cause birth defects, accelerate the aging process, cause breathing problems and could lead to cancer.

From an infection point-of-view, not showering before entering the pool can also increase the amounts of germs in pool water. Although disinfectants do a good job of cleaning most pools, more diseases can be transmitted when the chemicals are not used correctly. This threat multiplies if pool water is swallowed.

There are some germs, like cryptosporidium, that are not killed by conventional amounts of chlorine used to clean pools. Germs like these come from fecal matter, usually because of dirty diapers in the pool. But they can also come from the skin of children, or even adults that didn't shower before entering a pool.

With all these facts in mind, it's important that everyone shower before entering the water. Make sure to use soap and water, especially in the diaper area for young children, to minimize the amounts of bacteria from fecal matter they carry into the pool.

Also, have children take frequent bathroom breaks. For the smaller children, check their diapers often. As for adults - since 1 in 5 of us admit to urinating in the pool water - if you feel the need to relieve yourself, get out of the water and make a quick trip to the bathroom.

Few Parents Enforce Shower Before Pool Rules that Prevent Illness ...

Water parks offer families a chance to have fun and be physically active. That fun may come with the risk of getting sick with infections from the water, illnesses that affect over 10,000 Americans each year. One of the best ways to reduce the risk of infection is to make sure that parents and kids shower before playing at water parks.

The University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health asked parents of elementary school kids about their perceptions of water park risks and their opinions about basic water park rules. The sample included families who have taken their children to water parks within the past year.

"While 64 percent of parents feel it is very important for children to not swallow the water at a water park, only 26 percent of parents think it is very important to shower before getting in the water," says Matthew Davis, MD, director of the poll and associate professor in the Child Health Evaluation and Research Unit at the U-M Medical School. "Parents seem to understand the risk of contaminated water for their kids but few have their kids take the necessary preventive steps to keep everyone healthy."

Most parents also may not appreciate their role in preventing recreational water infections, Davis says. While 65 percent of parents feel that preventing Recreational Water Illnesses (RWIs) is a shared responsibility between parents and water park staff, 28 percent of parents feel that water park staff alone is responsible.

"This poll shows that relatively few parents fully understand their role in preventing infections at water parks," says Davis, who is also associate professor of public policy at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy. "The ‘shower before entering’ rule posted at water parks nationwide isn’t meant to be optional. Showering is a simple and effective way to reduce the spread of germs, including some germs like Cryptosporidium that are not killed with conventional levels of chlorine. When parents let their kids play at a water park without showering, they may be raising the risk of infection for everyone."

Parents perceive the risk of infections from water parks as lower than the risk of drowning, Davis adds. In fact, national data indicate that infections are more common than drowning each year.

Water park staff and parents can work together to prevent infections. Staff can follow state-of-the-art steps to managing risks of cryptosporidiosis, which include treating with high levels of chlorine intermittently and using ozone or ultra-violet treatment technologies.

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