You know you shouldn’t pee in the pool, but you probably do it anyway. But at what price? Do you even know?
There are no difficult and fast figures on the frequency to which people pee in the swimming pool, but at least one survey has obtained 40% of American adults to admit having peed in the pool. It does not seem exaggerated: older research published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology Letters have analyzed the water samples of 31 pools and hot tubs and discovered that a swimming pool of 220,000 gallons contained approximately 20 gallons of pee.
With this, the chances that you swim in the pee this summer are high. So what to pee in the pool is disgusting, is it really so bad? What can happen if you or someone around you, do it once? In the name of science, we have exploited a toxicologist, a doctor and a microbiologist of infectious diseases to break everything.
What’s going on when you pee in a swimming pool?
A few things. The big problem is the interaction of urine with chemicals in the pool. “When human urine combines with chemicals that are present in chlorinated swimming pools, potentially harmful compounds called disinfection by-products, or DBP, can form,” said Dr. Kelly Johnson-Arbor, toxicologist at Medstar Health.
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Urine naturally contains compounds containing nitrogen like urea, ammonia and creatinine, said Johnson-Arbor. “These compounds rich in nitrogen can react with chlorine or other disinfectants found in swimming pools to form DBP which can cause harmful effects on health.”
Chlorine specifically forms something called chloramines when it binds to human waste (like pee) in the pool, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. These chloramines can accumulate in water and gases in the air.
It’s not just a thing of urine. “Chlorine interacts with many types of organic matter,” said Thomas MelendyAssociate professor of microbiology and immunology, and biochemistry at Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences from the University of Buffalo in New York. “The reason why it is placed in swimming pools is to act as an antibacterial and an antiviral. This helps keep the pool clean and non -infectious.”
What is the size of an agreement?
It depends on how you look at him. “From an infectious point of view, peeing in a well -chlorinated swimming pool does not really present a problem. This should not be confused with the poop in the pool, which does it,” said Dr. Thomas Russo, professor and infectious diseases at the University of Buffalo. Although urine is not sterile, most people do not carry major pathogens in their pee that chlorine cannot manage, said Russo.
But chloramines can be a problem, according to Melendy. “Whenever chlorine interacts with organic matter, that chloramines, “he said.” The more chloramines produced, The higher the risk of irritation of the skin, eyes and lungs. (This can be a greater problem in people with underlying respiratory problems such as asthma, he said.)
If the ventilation in an area is not excellent, chloramines which are out of gas from the water will deposit on the surface of the water, where they can cause symptoms, depending on the CDC. One of these chloramines is trichloramine, a volatile chemical that evaporates easily in the air and causes the “chlorine” signature in the swimming pools, said Johnson-Arbor.
More organic matter in ThHe pool, the more chloramines produced, said Melendy. (This includes pee, as well as sweat and shit particles.) This also inactive chlorine, he underlines. “The more organic matter you introduce in the swimming pool, the less effective chlorine is an antibacterial because it is used,” said Melendy.
What if you pee in a salt water swimming pool?
The impact is probably the same, said Johnson-Arbor. “Salt water pools use chlorine generated electrochemically Instead of liquid chlorine for disinfection, “said Johnson-Arbor. (The electrochemically generated chlorine occurs once a electric current has gone through a concentrated saline solution.)
“Since this process always generates chlorine, any question containing nitrogen which is present in a salt water swimming pool can always be combined with chlorine to generate DBP,” said Johnson-Arbor.
What if only one person pee in the pool?
If you really have to go and there is no bathroom nearby, it is just to ask you how much it will be if one person pee in the pool. “It’s a question of concentration,” said Melendy. “There is so much chlorine and water in the pool. If only one persOn pee in a very large swimming pool, it’s a bitKey to create a significant irritant. (However, he emphasizes that sensitivity varies from one person to another.)
“If he is a person in a really small swimming pool, it could have a significant impact,” said Melendy. “Conversely, if it’s a large swimming pool and many people do it, IThey will produce a lot of chloramine gas. It is a nuanced thing.
Johnson-Arbor also stressed that it is not just a problem of urine. Sweating and poop particles inevitably slide your skin and in water as well. “In addition, if individuals do not shower before entering the pools, their loose hair and their skin cells can be transferred from their bodies to the pool, contributing more to the development of DBP,” said Johnson-Arbor.
In the end, doctors recommend making a pass to pee in the pool. “Aside from the prospect of public health, it’s just a bad behavior,” said Russo.
