How Are Swimming Pool and Eye Health Interrelated to Each Other?

Most of us love to visit water parks during the summer to get ourselves relieved from the scorching heat of the summer. From kids to adults, everybody enjoys the flush of water in the water parks and swimming pools. While we are talking about water parks and swimming pools, let’s get some basic knowledge about swimming pools and how they are related to our eye health!

About Swimming

We all are aware that swimming is very beneficial for our bodies. Swimming is not only fun but also a great activity and a whole-body exercise. Swimming is a fantastic extracurricular activity for kids and adults. No wonder, it helps build our bones and muscles strong, and also acts as a stress reliever. It helps in the flexibility of our body and improves balance, posture, and coordination. Make sure that you know swimming before you dive into the swimming pool.

Swimming is a low-impact body exercise and is a great way to stay fit and healthy. It also helps to build a friend circle. It helps to maintain a healthy, and keep the lungs and the heart rate balanced. It tones the muscles and builds strength as it is an overall body workout. Swimming is one of the most popular sports practised all over the world.

Chlorine Allergy and Swimming

It is a very common fact that chlorine and saline are used in swimming pools to kill harmful bacteria and viruses. A swimmer’s eye should be very sharp while swimming in the pool or the lakes. Thus before he dives into the pool, he should take proper precautions and protections.

It often happens that one might find skin reactions to chlorine. Since the skin is the outermost layer of our body, they show an allergic reaction to chlorine. Though chlorine is very important for the pools and the lakes to keep them safe and bacteria-free, it can also be very harmful and show various reactions in the skin and eyes.

Chlorine reacts the fastest on the skin and the eyes. Chlorine burn and chlorine allergy rashes are very common for people who do swimming regularly and are more exposed to the chlorine of the swimming pool, which leads the skin to a more allergic reaction to chlorine.

Can Swimming pool water damage your eyes?

Are you aware of the disease called swimmer’s eye? Well, it is a disease that often is a combination of tear film disruption (dry eyes) and chemical conjunctivitis (irritation) caused by poor swimming habits and chlorine. The symptoms of a swimmer's eye include irritation, itchiness, redness (refer to our blog Bloodshot eyes to know more about other factors that cause redness of the eyes), burning, swollen eyes, discharge, and blurred vision.

Chlorine has different side effects apart from killing the bacteria. Chlorine burns from pools are very common and are seen frequently among people. This is caused to people having an allergic reaction to chlorine in the pools.

Do you know that chlorine can cause serious damage to the eyes?

Chlorine and Saline play an important role in disinfecting swimming pools. But the beneficial chemical can also wreak havoc on the eyes. If the right amount of chlorine is not mixed with water, it can cause eye irritation in the form of stinging, burning, dryness, and redness. The pH balance of the swimming pool is 7.4 approx, and if that exceeds it may lead to various other problems

Many people’s eyes are chlorine sensitive. They react immediately after the person comes out of the pools. Chlorine skin rashes are common and are often seen in both swimmers and non-swimmers.

The main signs of chlorine-burning eyes are-

• Redness
• Pain
• Discharge, that is something yellowish and mucus-like fluid
• Vision Problems
• Sensitivity to light
• Swelling

Precautions Taken Before and After Swimming

What to do if chlorine goes inside the eyes? Well, it is very natural that in the swimming pools chlorine will always be a part of it. Without chlorine, one cannot swim in the pools and there will be an increase of bacteria in the water which will increase the risk of both eye and skin diseases.

• Maintain the pH balance of the water that matches the eyes. If you own a swimming pool, frequently check the balance of the pool and the amount of chlorine and salt water so that it does not cause many after-effects.
• It is very important to protect the tear film from the eyes. If not done properly, it can lead to dry-eye syndrome. Applying lubricating drops before and after swimming can give support to the tear film and will keep them safe and protected.
• Many people think that swimming goggles are only for the swimmers and not for people who do swimming just for fun. But wearing goggles is the best way to protect the tear film while swimming. (You can refer to our blog on swimming goggles to know more about them).
• It is advised not to wear contact lenses in the swimming pools as they attract bacteria and cause an eye infection. Instead, one can opt for prescription goggles for a better view of the pool while performing the activity.
• Doctors often suggest not to opt for swimming after any eye surgery like Lasik. This is because if chlorine enters the eyes, it can lead to various other infections and will lead to more damage to the eyes.
• Though in summer, we all try to keep ourselves hydrated, it is also very important to keep ourselves hydrated by drinking the right amount of water before and after swimming.
• Washing our eyes is very important after you come out of the pool. Do not forget to wash your eyes as soon as you come out of the pool as it will help to remove the chlorine from the eyes.
• Last but not the least, use proper eye drops, creams, antibiotics, and warm compresses to soothe the pain. This will help to keep the eyes safe and protected.

This is a small guide about how swimming pools and our eye health are related to each other and how the chlorine in the water is beneficial as well as can be harmful to our eyes. So we must take proper care and precautions before we dive into the pool for fun and profession.