MadSci Network: General Biology
Query:

Re: Why don't women continue menstruating in a pool?

Date: Fri Mar 16 18:05:04 2001
Posted By: R. James Swanson, Faculty, Biological Sciences, Obstetrics & Gynecology, Old Dominion University
Area of science: General Biology
ID: 984626070.Gb
Message:

Dear Numa:  Ah, but they do!  There are some women who will use a tampon type of absorbent that doesn’t let many cells and blood out of the reproductive tract when swimming.  Those who don’t use tampons but still go swimming are loosing menstrual tissues throughout the swim.  In a chlorinated pool, the chlorine bleaches out most of the color rather quickly and has some disinfection-like activity but the material is still leaving the body.  The volume of water that it is being diluted into is rather large and this also helps it not to be seen.  In the ocean, the water is too cloudy to see the menstrual flow in the water but it is there.  In this case the dilution factor completely overwhelmes the body fluids.  I would strongly encourage a woman to always use a tampon type device when swimming during the menstrual period to avoid any chance of embarrassing herself or others.
If you don’t believe what I am saying, think about how many little kids urinate in the pool rather than getting out and making their way to the bathroom.  How many reading this remember when you were small and . . . ?  Do you ever see yellow or even smell a urine odor in a pool when swimming where there are small children?  The chlorine is the key here.  Probably doesn’t make you look forward to swimming in the community pool this summer but that is the way it is and that is why chlorine must be used, by law.  It’s perfectly safe but I teach my kids to be rigorous about going to the bathroom and also to keep their mouth shut when in the water.


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