Cold viruses and swimming pools . . .

I am ready to swear on a stack of Bibles that I catch colds from public pools. There is some evidence online that viruses of various types have developed resistance to chlorine, so maybe I'm right. I just wonder if anyone else notices that they get a cold within 2 days of heading back into their pool.

I'm not having a chlorine reaction, either, because the type of cold can vary from a chest cold to a head cold. In either case, they seem worse than your usual "garden variety" cold, another reason I have to wonder if the viruses are becoming stronger.

I don't doubt it. Anywhere there's people, there's bugs. I just caught my 2nd Staph infection from my gym.

I swim fairly often, and I've never noticed getting sick after swimming. I hope that's not true about some chlorine-resistant viruses - it's going to make me not want to swim anymore!

Are you sure you're not standing around with wet hair?  That's also known to add to your risk of catching something.

I swear you are right, every time i take my baby to the pool, he comes back sick within a day or two!!! im afraid to take him back!

If you're swimming at a public pool there are lots of people in close proximity... and where there are people, there are germies. It's as simple as that.

I swim almost every day and have not suffered from a cold or bug for over two years..I always ensure I wrap up , wear a hat , after my swim when I go back out into the cold air

Original Post by kajikit:

If you're swimming at a public pool there are lots of people in close proximity... and where there are people, there are germies. It's as simple as that.

I agree with this idea.  It's probably possible for cold viruses to not be resistant but, generally speaking, cold viruses are spread through direct human contact.  It's probably more likely that person A goes in the pool with a cold and on the way in (or out) they wipe their nose then touches the rail or sneezes into the air.  Then person B (you) touches the rail or walk through the sneeze mist.