Swimmer's alert: Chlorinated
versus non-chlorinated water
Health experts are becoming
increasingly concerned about the health dangers from swimming in chlorinated
water. One must ask whether the dangers from swimming in chlorinated water,
outweigh the dangers of swimming in water that has not had chlorine added to
it.
Chlorine is the well known
chemical that is widely recommended and used for swimming pool sanitation.
"Swimming pool sanitation
refers to both visual clarity and level of microflora, such as bacteria and
viruses in swimming pools. The goal of sanitation is to prevent the spread of
diseases and pathogens between users. Unsanitized water may also support the
growth of algae which will present as a greenish tinge initially, then if left
unchecked may completely inhabit the pool water displaying a solid green murky
appearance." (1)
What is chlorine?
"Chlorine (Greek khloros
meaning pale green) is the chemical element with the atomic number 17 and symbol
Cl. It is a halogen found in the periodic table in group 17. As the chloride
ion, which is part of common salt and other compounds, it is abundant in nature
and necessary to most forms of life, including humans. (2)
Note that this states that
"the chlorine ion, which is part of common salt and other compounds"
appears to be not only supportive of life, but essential to life, as it
pertains to both nature and humans.
"In its common elemental
form Cl 2 or "dichlorine", under standard conditions, chlorine is a
powerful oxidant and is used in bleaching and disinfectants. As a common
disinfectant, chlorine compounds are used in swimming pools to keep them clean
and sanitary. In the upper atmosphere, chlorine-containing molecules such as
chlorofluorocarbons have been implicated in the destruction of the ozone
layer." (3)
What this suggests is that the
chlorine that is used in swimming pools is actually the elemental from of
chlorine, Cl 2 or a dichloride.
What is Cl 2?
"This is a pale
yellow-green gas that has its distinctive strong smell, the smell of
bleach." (4)
"A dichloride contains two
chlorine atoms bound by a single element or radical." (5)
"Chlorine gas is not
usually detected in the environment. Exposure to chlorine can occur following
an accident, such as a leak or spill from a chlorine tank or the improper use
of swimming pool chemicals. Exposure to low levels of chlorine gas can result
in nose, throat and eye irritation." (6)
There are numerous reports of
different kinds of health-related problems that have occurred, as the result of
exposure to chlorine gas. Perhaps the health problems should be addressed in
terms of chlorine versus dichloride or chlorine gas, as that may be where the
actual problem lies. Either way, it appears obvious that the chlorine that has
been recommended as being effective in terms of health protection, needs to be
studied more fully, with respect to possible adverse or detrimental effects on
human health.
Any departure from something
that is part of the natural environment or a man-made variation thereof, may
prove to offer health benefits, but may also demonstrate adverse effects for
human beings and for the environment, particularly when its original chemical
structure has been altered or compromised
This article concludes suggesting
that what is used in swimming pools is not actually chlorine in its natural
state, but instead, may be a modified form of chlorine, one that is actually a
dichloride.
This may be something that
medical and scientific experts will need to address more fully in the future,
as it is apparent that what is called chlorine now and is used in
swimming pools is presenting a serious health hazard.
Perhaps the problem has
something to do with the amount of chlorine that is being used in swimming
pools, as well as a man made modification or altered form. It may also have
something to do with chemical interactions of some kind, like the chemicals
contained in the materials used for swimming pool construction.
Pathogenic bacteria and viruses
that inhabit and contaminate swimming pools can cause serious infections to
human beings and that issue must be addressed appropriately, but a healthy
balance must be maintained between what is used to eliminate pathogens and what
is needed to improve the quality of one's health and to sustain life.
Non-chlorinated swimming pools
may be unsafe because of pathogenic bacteria and viruses. Chlorinated swimming
pools may prove to be equally unsafe, because of noxious gases. There is no
easy answer for this debate.
(3) Ibid.
(4) Ibid.
(5) http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/dichloride
(6)
http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/tfacts172.html
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