Almost everyone is guilty of it, at least once. You are having a fun day, splashing about in the pool and then oops! your bladder tells you you have to go now. Instead of painfully holding it in, swimming across the length of the pool, and running like a headless chicken to the bathroom. You simply let go, right there in the pool, praying that no one will notice. Yes, some of us have walked down this path. And you are not alone, even champion Olympic swimmers, Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte admit to have done it. But here’s why it’s bad.
Urine + Chlorine = Really Deadly Chemicals
This is because uric acid — one of the chemicals found in urine — reacts with chlorine to generate chemicals that could be really bad. It is true that chlorine has the ability to kill micro-organisms as you may have learnt in Chemistry class (Science students, put your lighters up); but it doesn’t kill chemicals, rather it changes them into other dangerous chemicals.
- Cyanogen Chloride is one of the products of the uric acid + chlorine combination and has even been used in wars to kill opposing enemies! High doses of it can cause convulsions, coma, and even death. But if there’s enough chlorine in the pool, this dangerous chemical usually breaks down quickly after it’s formed, but this may not happen if the chlorine has become severely depleted — for instance, if there’s a large crowd of swimmers, many of whom are peeing in the pool, causing the disinfectant level to drop.
- Trichloramine is another chemical formed from the unholy combination of urine and chlorine, and is capable of causing respiratory ailments like asthma. This is because trichloramine is easily transfered from the liquid phase to the gaseous phase, which contaminates the air and when inhaled may lead to the onset of asthma.
Sweat + Chlorine = Deadly Chemicals Too
It’s not just urine that turns toxic when mixed with chlorine. Sweat contains many of the same organic compounds as urine, which means jumping into the pool without showering is also a big N-O.
Besides if you wouldn’t want to swim in another person’s urine – which ranks really high on the gross, icky and yucky scales! -, don’t make everybody else swim in yours!!
So, the next time your bladder plays a coup on you; race to the ladder, run to the bathroom, and unleash your venom into the urinal or the toilet bowl, that’s where it really belongs.
