The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other agencies such as the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health have released multiple reports such as this one in 1991 of death from chlorine toxicity from mixing chlorine or bleach with other chemicals. In the 1991 report, at least 14 persons died from mixing chlorine bleach with other household cleaners over a span of two years. In 2015, in Orange County, California, a man died from mixing regular amounts of chlorine with other pool cleaners when cleaning a swimming pool. The news headlines read, “Even Small Quantities of Chlorine Pose Danger.” The scary thing is…these reports are not even the half of it.

Lastly, and possibly the most horrific danger, those who are exposed to and ingest chlorinated water on a regular basis are 93% more likely to get CANCER than those who are not exposed to the chemical.

Death, Skin Damage, or Eye Damage from Exposure to Chlorine Alone

In 2011, the CDC released a list of facts about chlorine and gave detailed warnings about the long-term health hazards of chlorine exposure beyond the hazards of mixing chlorine with other chemicals. In this list, the CDC details that exposure to chlorine, in the eyes or on the skin, produces an acid, and it is this acid that can permanently damage or kill a person. It is potentially deadly for a person to touch, inhale, or swallow chlorine, depending on the level of exposure to the chemical. This begs the question, “How much chlorine exposure is unsafe or potentially deadly?”

Too Much Chlorine in a Pool

Too much chlorine in a pool will send you to the hospital or kill you in one of three ways. It is dangerous, first of all, because it causes burning of the skin and irritation such as rashes, if left untreated, severe cases can have permanent, lasting effects on one’s skin. Another way that too much chlorine in a pool is dangerous is that it causes chlorine gas to be emitted directly off the evaporating water from the pool. Again, inhaled chlorine gas can kill you. Lastly, and possibly the most horrific danger, those who are exposed to and ingest chlorinated water on a regular basis are 93% more likely to get CANCER than those who are not exposed to the chemical. According to the United States Council of Environmental Quality, chlorine exposure to skin or through ingestion also contributes to a long list of other serious health risks such as heart attacks, liver and kidney failure, asthma, miscarriages in women, low sperm count in men, risk of having a child with spina bifida, and weakened immune system to name a few. So whether you are exposed to chlorine in ingesting the chemical and even skin exposure to the chemical, there are so many easy ways you could go wrong and become ill or even die.

What about a Chlorine-Free Pool?

You may be asking yourself how you can still enjoy swimming pools but want to rid your pool water of the toxic, deadly chlorine. I don’t blame you. You’ll be happy to find out that not only is it infinitely healthier to switch to a chlorine-free pool, but it is actually less expensive and easier to maintain one. If you already have a chlorine pool, you can even convert an existing chlorine or saltwater pool system to a non-chlorine Oxygen Pool system. What’s more is that it is only $399 to convert an average pool to an Oxygen Pool system. That cost is less than it costs to maintain a chlorine pool or even to buy one salt water system replacement cell. So whether you’re installing a pool for the first time or want to make the leap, you can learn more at the link below about switching and the health benefits and ease of maintenance for your very own Oxygen Pool today!