The Effect of Chlorinating Indoor Pools

Posted by Uni Blake Apr 11, 2009

Staying fit during the wintertime in the northeast US is a challenge. Most people rely heavily on indoor gyms to keep physically active. There are however some draw backs to exercising in indoor facilities, especially indoor swimming pools.

Swimming pools need to be disinfected; it is a matter of public health. Most swimming pools maintainance includes chlorinating the water to destroy the unwanted microorganisms. This gives the indoor pool the familiar chlorine smell. The chlorine then interacts with among other things the nitrogen containing compounds found in sweat, urine and saliva producing unwanted chloroamines as byproducts. These gases combined with the chlorine and other chlorination products to create a mist of chemicals above the water’s surface. This is the air exposed to indoor pool swimmers.

Inhalation of the chlorine based compounds at high enough concentrations can cause acute lung damage, aspiration pneumonia, allergy related diseases and in some cases asthma especially in infant children. These chemicals create an unwanted burden in children predisposing them to asthma and possibly chronic bronchitis.

Be cautious when taking infants to indoor pools where there is a suspect amount of chlorine in the air.