Started swmming recently in training for the Durty Triathlon, but the chlorine is killng me. Every night and the next morning I'm sneezing like a b*stard and my nose is running more than I do in a week. Is there any way to avoid these effects?
Hayfever tablets - anti histamines ( I think thats what my mum uses as she sneezes after swimming)
my daughter uses a noseclip..... she only gets affected at one pool, others are fine.
MTFU
I swam all through my yoot and it hasn't affected me................................................................................................much
🙂
Try a different pool if you can.
Some pools use less than others because their filters are better.
some peoples noses do have a fairly strong reaction to any water going up their noses, I know I do.
noseclip is the way to go. One guy I used to see a bit would use a noseclip and earplugs and he made sure his goggle were on really tight.
Second the different pool suggestion
I swim in two pools regularly, one is a typical chlorinated pool, the other is UV filtered. The difference in after affects is very noticeable, I used to think that it was down to the swimming rather than the chlorine itself.
Try a different pool. The chlorine should be virtually undetectable if the pool is being managed properly. The unpleasant side effects are caused by chloramines (chlorine and nitrates / ammonias). These are useless sanitisers and the pool needs to be regularly "shocked" to enable the oxidation of the chloramines.
If the pool is neglected little free chlorine remains and the water is a breeding ground for bacteria. Most US pools use bromine, which is slightly more effective but much easier to manage, and has none of the nasty side effects.
I would use a different pool but this one's 2 minutes walk from work and cheap. Others are miles away and private gym jobs.
Do antihistamines work against chlorine?
The canal?
The canal?
Now with added Weil's disease!
samuri - Member
some peoples noses do have a fairly strong reaction to any water going up their noses, I know I do.
That's an experience and technique thing you can get out of. I'm sure that everyone who breathed in through their nose underwater would have the same effect, you just need to adjust your technique accordingly. Water should never go up your nose, you just need to maintain a suitable air pressure in there to keep it out. The reason synchro swimmers use a clip is because they're inverted a lot of the time and therefore cannot afford to continuously exhale.
Similarly, the vast majority of the kids I coach are convinced they can't swim without goggles - this is purely because they've always had them and have never tried it any other way. I saw goggles as a luxury when I was swimming as a kid, i.e. not a necessity, so am fine either way.
maru and zoggs noseclips are excellent. rinse the skin on your nose well before putting on as the oils in your skin will cause it to slide off otherwise!
Interesting! I only get the runny nose for about 30 minutes or whilst I'm in the shower. I am getting really dry skin and the ezcema on my eyelids (for some reason the only area I get a problem) has come back quite bad.I find it hard to wash the chlorine smell of my skin no matter how muhc shower gel I use or how long I spend in the shower! I can't try another pool as there aren't any others near me. But I suddenly have been really really really enjoying my swimming, speed session tonight should be interesting!!
If you shower before you go into the pool then your body and hair get clean water into them before you get the chlorinated water in. That is suppoed to helpl protect skin and hair. I have no idea if it will help with allergies though.
I've been 'suffering' from stupidly itchy skin for quite a few months, thinking about it, it kind of coincides with me starting to swim a lot more at my gym... used to swim tons as a kid/teenager, never had a reaction to chlorine/poolwater, but wonder if it may be related now? hmmm....
swim somewhere else
or a nose clip
or vaseline around the inside of your nostrils
Ace thread, I started swimming 2 weeks ago (been twice) and have been wondering why I'm a bit snivvly with an itchy T-zone mid week.
I swim everyday, I'm alright. HTH
Pyschie I get stupidly itchy like I have fleas! It ie better if I put plain moisturiser like Nivea but when I get into bed it is horrific and hence the really dry shoulders. Guess it depends in what the pool has in it, ie a pool with more kids may have more concentrated chlorine!? Just an idea still doesn't help and on that note I am off for a speed session tonight, then a 2 miles on Sunday. Itchy just thinking about it 😉
started swimming regularly a 2-3 years ago. it was a learning curve regarding both technique in the pool and how to avoid irritation from chlorine. i nearly gave it up due to the miserable after effects but now i always use a nose clip, earplugs and goggles. i shower before and after and use vaseline dermo care products.
good luck at the durty triathlon, it is on my to do list.
Pyschie I get stupidly itchy like I have fleas!
Same here, I've scratched so much on my lower legs that I've drawn blood! It's only my lower legs mainly, though a bit on my arms as well... wonder if the pool is to blame? Can you test for chlorine allergy I wonder?
blimey - pools should be frequently back washed - ask how often they do it.....
otherwise, it sounds like body / skin conditioning required or possibly an inherent reaction irrespective of chlorine level / condition...
good luck !
Flaperon has pretty much hit the nail on the head (although Bromine's not necessarily the panacea either!).
The smell people associate with swimming pools is not chlorine, it is chloramines which are formed from the reaction of chlorine with sweat and urine. High levels of chloramine (also often referred to as "combined chlorine") indicate poor pool management or design or that the pool is being used outside its design parameters. If changing pool is not an option you might consider trying different times - e.g. if you are swimming during (or soon after) periods of high bather load; or if the manually dose chlorine (or shock dose at regular times) then, counter intuitively, go soon after they add the chlorine.
Anti-histamines may help alleviate the symptoms but aren't addressing the cause. If it is really bad then I'd question if they know what they are doing (the "fixes" are well known) which might call into doubt the general hygiene in the pool - in which case don't swallow any water!
Uh oh Poly too late! I think I swallowed a considerable amount tonight trying to so some sprint intervals! And boy I've never felt aching like it in my shoulders today! Vaseline products sound like an idea, I swear by it as lip balm.
(although Bromine's not necessarily the panacea either
Chlorine dioxide any better?
As Poly says.
In Oz I was told a pool with a chlorine smell was a pool that was not clean. Too much pee.
Epicyclo I feel sick now ych y fi!
Height of the pool roof makes a difference too apparently. Got a work colleague whose daughter is a pretty good swimmer, & has asthma. When she is at home (studies at Loughborough) one local pool that is used for early morning training kicks her chest off, and the only difference is that the building roof is quite low over the water surface. traps the humidity & chlorine closer to the water surface. She's been told that by British Swimming, so i assume they have other pools with similar issues out there.
Try drinking 750ml of water after your swim....I bet it helps.
Seems a bit dull taking pills and what not when there are easier, cheaper solutions.
Let me know how you get on.
In the pool as well as chlorine I sometimes get a whiff of something in the water that smells like really strong aftershave,it must be something added as well-no idea what that is, or do I want to know? I use the steam room to get rid of the chlorine from my skin afterwards, don't like the smell and probably not so good for your skin and hair.I would not take anti-histamines for any allergy personally but find an alternative if you can-(if your body is reacting to strong chemicals that's probably a good thing isn't it?). Lots of salt water pools about as well but not convenient for me.
I sometimes get a whiff of something in the water that smells like really strong aftershave
It probably is exactly that! I swim first thing in the morning on an almost empty stomach... you can taste other peoples perfumes etc in the water.
Why is water going up your nose? If your breath out through your nose when your face is under the water then turn your head to breath then you shouldnt get water up your nose - problem solved.
I used to suffer really badly with itching, even after showers or baths. What stopped it for me was making sure your skins well hydrated (god I sound like an oil of olay ad), rinse really well and pat yourself dry with the towel rather than rubbing. I also found using [url= http://www.britishcornershop.co.uk/product.asp?id=8229 ]Johnsons Moisturising 2 in 1 shower Gel[/url] helped. Bars of soap or strong smelling shower gels always made it a lot worse.
I usually swim 2 or 3 times a week, but have done 2 days in a row, last night and today lunch - Itchy itchy icthy now 👿
Chlorine dioxide any better?
I've never seen it in action in a pool, but given the complexities I've seen with it in hot water systems and cooling towers I'm not sure I'd want the average pool "janitor" looking after a ClO2 system.
the general air handling / ventilation will make a difference (and with poor air handling the size/volume of the pool hall) - but keeping the pool clean and the chloramines well managed will prevent them outgassing in the first place.Height of the pool roof makes a difference too apparently.
Lovemybikelady, why would you not take anti histamines? 18 months ago I had issues with my lips swelling uncontrollably over night it was horrific never got to the bottom of it and it happened pretty much every night for 3months took anti histamines for that. Hospital never found out what caused it and they said I could take them every day for the rest of my life as they are some of the safest drugs out there.
The itchy is horrific can't do baths though will try baseline products and more basic sensitive moisturiser on my whole body. It is worst for me when I get into bed even if its 12odd hours after wards it is wierd!!