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Health & Fitness

Poop In The Pool

The Centers For Disease Control recently tested a number of public pools and found a majority of them tested for high levels of bacteria. Escherichia coli, a bacterium that lives in the digestive tract of humans and other warm-blooded animals was found in unpleasant quantities. Is their a pleasant quantity?

The researchers treated the presence of E. coli as “a fecal indicator,” they wrote in their report. More prevalent was Pseudomonas aeruginosa. This bacterium can cause swimmer’s ear, an inflammation of the outer ear and ear canal. This little pest can make its way into pools via people, dirt, kickboards and other pool toys. Proper pool maintenance can keep this little pest in check.

I don't like public pools. Mission Viejo has a number of apartments and condominiums. My own condominium complex has a pool and a jacuzzi. I have yet to grace either with my own bum. Almost every morning, a rather large, hairy man reads the morning paper while in our jacuzzi. I fear this visit to warm, bubbly water is fast on the heals of sending a deposit to the harbor.

Yesterday, I watched two women walking their herd of shoeless children to the pool. Their collective feet were black with dirt from the asphalt as they hurled themselves in the pool of bacterium to cool off.

Really? C'mon people, put some baby wipes next to your toilet, clean yourself and take a shower before you hit the pool. I don't trust my own bath water let alone a public pool. I guess I will just stick to donning my goggles, putting on some water wings and jumping into the shower.

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