Is Chlorine in Our Drinking Water and Swimming Pools a Health Hazard?

Andy Whiteley/ Wake Up World

Pools are always attractive on those hot sunny days! You know those days I’m talking about; all you can imagine is throwing on your shorts or bathing suit and going out to the local pool to cool off on the hot summer day. And it’s no surprise…. water has always been a source of life and renewal on Earth.

But recently, water has become a major source of controversy, largely due to the amount of toxic crap that makes it into our tap water. Fluoride. Pesticides. Industrial pollution. The countless chemicals present in our water supplies today pose long term risks to our health; something science has known for decades. And although the community is waking up to the damaging effects of fluoride and other toxins, few people consider the effects of chlorine – a chemical that is added not just to our drinking water but to our swimming pools as well.

Chlorine and Swimming Pools

Do you think twice before you jump in a stream or river, but not before you jump into a chlorinated swimming pool?

Swimming is an excellent form of exercise. But like many activities, swimming in a pool has its downside. To maintain an artificial swimming pool takes a constant effort to disinfect them because the water is essentially stagnant, meaning it doesn’t move. When water is stagnant it becomes home to bacteria, algae, mosquitoes and other bugs, while water that is constantly moving remains fresh, oxygenated, and endlessly and more welcoming for swimmers. The most common way we keep our pools disinfected is with chlorine.

Despite our attempts to avoid disease by disinfecting our pools and tap water, an increasing body of research suggests that disinfectant agents like chlorine may pose their own health hazards.

Swimming in chlorinated pools, particularly indoor pools, has been shown to put kids at higher risk for developing respiratory illnesses, including asthma and hay fever. A 2004 study revealedthat swimmers experienced breathing problems similar to those associated with asthma after several minutes of swimming in chlorinated water, even where chlorine levels were below the level recommended for disinfecting swimming pools.

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