Preventing health problems associated with bathing waters

Bathing waters include waters in natural environments (beaches, lakes, rivers) and artificial pools such as indoor and outdoor pools and spas. They can be contaminated by microorganisms (bacteria, parasites, viruses) or other pollutants.

Some health problems may occur when:

• someone swallows contaminated water
• their body comes into contact with contaminated water
• they breathes chloramines released by the addition of chlorine to water

To learn more about these health problems, read Health problems associated with bathing waters.

Here are the main precautions to take to protect your health when bathing:

• Do not swallow the water you bathe in
• Avoid bathing if you have an open wound
• Take a shower after swimming

Here are the precautions to take at beaches and other natural environments:

• If possible, bathe in places where water quality is analyzed regularly and results of the analyses displayed
• Bathe in organized, supervised places
• Respect the warnings posted. Most drownings occur in natural bodies of water. Adopt safe behaviours
• Avoid swimming in places where there are blue-green algae blooms
• Put sunscreen on half an hour before bathing
• Take precautions to avoid swimmer's itch:
  • When you get out of the water, dry your skin by rubbing it vigorously with a towel
  • If you have symptoms of swimmer’s itch, inform the people in charge of where you bathed
• Do not feed waterfowl. Their feces may contain bacteria or parasites such as cercarias (small larvae that can cause swimmer’s itch) which can contaminate water

Here are the precautions to take in these places:

• Check if there are water quality test records
• Go to the toilet just before bathing
• Shower with soap for at least one minute and rinse well. That way you limit the amount of contaminants (sweat, secretions, skin particles, cosmetics residue, urine and feces) you can leave in the water:
  • Indoor pool: with soap
  • Outdoor pool: without soap so as not to remove the protective effect of your sunscreen
• Avoid putting your head underwater in a spa in order to prevent infections
• Follow the instructions posted (house rules, posters, etc.) near bathing areas
• Respect the number of persons allowed in the spa. The amount of microorganisms in the water and the risk of infection increase with the number of bathers
• Avoid bathing in a spa if you have a weakened immune system (during cancer treatment, after an organ transplant). The temperature of the water in a spa can promote the growth of certain bacteria
• Let the people in charge know if:
  • the chlorine smell is irritating
  • there is feces or vomit in the water

Bathers cannot rely on the clarity of water to assess quality in swimming pools and spas. The Ministère de l’Environnement et de la Lutte contre les changements climatiques has therefore established guidelines to ensure water quality in public pools and spas. These guidelines appear in the Règlement sur la qualité de l’eau des piscines et autres bassins artificiels (Regulation Respecting Water Quality in Swimming Pools and other Artificial Pools, in French only).

Under this regulation, persons managing all public pools or spas should conduct daily verification of chlorine levels in the water. Also, they must collect water samples and have them analyzed to see if the water is contaminated by microorganisms. The frequency of microbiological water sample analysis depends on the type of pool:

• Outdoor pools: every 2 weeks
• Indoor pools: every 4 weeks

A record of test results must be kept. The results of these tests must be displayed such that bathers can consult them.

If test results are not displayed or are unavailable, you have no way of knowing if the water in the pool is of good quality.