Swimming with a rash: Kosher or taboo?

Sharpsburger, just wondering... Does swimming (I mean soaking your skin in poolwater all the time) make things worse for you? About staph: I once got a staph infection from a swimming pool. One of the other swimmers on our team was out with a staph infection in his leg, and a day or so later, I had a large swollen sore between my nose and eye! I had some very slightly broken skin from the nose bridge of my goggles rubbing, so that's how the staph entered. Anyway, yes, it could have been serious if left unchecked, but it was very obvious long before that point. Oral antibiotics easily did the trick. Just keep an eye on the skin where you're vulnerable, and if you start getting a large boil-like sore, go straight to the doc. You won't have to go to the hospital. (I HATE hospitals, too!) I haven't noticed that swimming has any effect one way or the other. The only time I got a staph infection was from swimming in rivers in Florida. It was a real pain. Every day I had to lather up with special soap, then turn off the water and just stand there for five minutes in the lather before rinsing off. That was years ago, tho, before the superbugs.

I know how that feels. Dogs almost ruined my life. I am allergic to dust mites as well. I've found that the zippered up covers, mattress, pillows, etc. helps. And my whole house is hard wood floors. definitely a good thing for anyone with allergies! I can't imagine being allergic to dogs! I absolutely love dogs. They're so much fun to play with, love on, wrestle with, hike with, hang out with. Cats are cool, but they're a different kind of critter. I have cats, mind you. Originally got cats to chase the field mice out of my house. I can't have dogs now b/c I live alone and I'm gone most of the day and I don't have enough land (only about an acre) so that they can run free. In other words, I can't provide them a pack, and a dog wants nothing more in this world than to be part of a pack. A lonely dog is a miserable dog. I have a mild allergy to cats, but it only shows up if I don't live with cats. When I have them in my house, I quickly build up a resistance. Which is good, because when it gets cold, like it is now, I wake up wearing kitties every morning.

Probably more danger of catching staph from benches, deck, doors at the pool than from the pool water itself. Be very careful about casual contact between broken skin and surfaces. Well, that' good then. Btw, does anybody know saltwater pools pose any more of a danger than chlorinated pools?

Probably more danger of catching staph from benches, deck, doors at the pool than from the pool water itself. Be very careful about casual contact between broken skin and surfaces. I got MRSA when athlete's foot caused cracks between toes offering a point of entry for bacteria. It was nasty. Actually the MDs said often the bacteria is already colonized on your skin but your immune system is able to keep it at bay as long as it doesn't get through a break in the skin. I believe he mentioned that staph likes living around your nose; your hands can easily transfer it elsewhere.

No need for Jimby to chime in on this one - we all know his thoughts on the subject. The rule (sometimes written, sometimes understood) is that you shouldn't swim with open wounds, sores, and the like. It's not that you may infect other people in the pool, its that you are OPEN (OPEN WOUND) to all kinds of other nasty, gross stuff that might be lurking in the water. Cryptosporidium & Shigella are two of the most difficult diseases to kill even when water conditions are maintained at perfect levels. Any person who enters a pool or spa will bring with them and release small quantities of fecal matter from their buttocks. Shedding of human material such as mucus, saliva & skin is a second source of illness, releasing potential non-enteric pathogenic organisms. Furthermore, bacteria can also be shed by bathers and transmitted to other bathers in the pool or spa. Other free-living aquatic amoebas can survive aquatic facility areas such as HVAC systems. Wet surfaces can also allow for the growh of these organisms. The risks are a whole spectrum of resiratory, dermal, or central nervous system infections or diseases. Therefore, the question that begs to be asked, "Do you want to risk acquiring a more serious infection?" or "will you just give it a rest until there is sufficient scab/healing?"

Therefore, the question that begs to be asked, "Do you want to risk acquiring a more serious infection?" or "will you just give it a rest until there is sufficient scab/healing?" There's always Bondo.

Just wear tights that cover it. It still can become tabooish if secondary infection, like staph, occurs, which usually does in pools. Tights? What sort of tights?

I break out in hives around my moobs, pits and neck when I get run down or take some cold medicines...it looks awful but is not contagious...still I feel I owe parents an explanation before I get in the water to teach their little ones.

If there's been a rash of burglaries in your neighborhood, you definitely should not go swimming. You could come home and find the place ransacked and your computers, flat screen, microwave, and jewellry gone. :bolt: D2

If there's been a rash of burglaries in your neighborhood, you definitely should not go swimming. You could come home and find the place ransacked and your computers, flat screen, microwave, and jewellry gone. :bolt: D2 Actually, the rash of burglaries has been at the pool! (Seriously)