• Replies 3 replies
  • Subscribers 5 subscribers
  • Views 618 views
  • Users 0 members are here
Options
Related

Theory about swimming during COVID-19 pandemic

Elaine Krugman
According to WebMD, the SARS-CoV-2 virus (which causes COVID-19) lives in peopleâ€Tms nasal passages. When an infected person exhales, they release viral particles from their nose into the air. Common health advice about air travel is to use saline spray to keep nasal passages moist and saline eye drops to keep eyes lubricated during a flight. This is to help prevent getting sick from a virus, since the air on planes is extremely dry, making it easier for viruses to spread. Given those two scientifically proven facts, would it be fair to conclude that the chances of getting COVID-19 while swimming are less than being unmasked on deck? (Assuming everything else being equal-- the distance kept between you and other people, etc.) This is my theory, for these reasons: 1. While swimming, the nasal passages are constantly wet (and chlorine is in the water), making it more difficult for the virus to live in a swimmer's nose. 2. Wearing goggles protects the eyes from coming in contact with the virus. 3. Except for backstroke, exhalation is done in the water, making it less likely an infected swimmer could pass the virus to another swimmer (as long as they are actually swimming and not chatting side-by-side at the end of the lane). 4. During inhalation, it seems like a very inhospitable environment for the virus to enter and infect a swimmer. 67King, care to weigh in on this? Is there an epidemiologist out there?
  • 67King, care to weigh in on this? Is there an epidemiologist out there? Oh, lord, I'm an engineer. I've based my prior thoughts on what has been reported about how chlorine kills the virus. There was that report from New Jersey which showed no cases stemming from pools. That said, I think now that even with backstroke, the air in the vicinity immediately above the pool surface has to be so chlorine rich that the virus probably wouldn't do too well. And as one inhales, they are also breathing that chlorine rich air. As for being on deck. I'm inclined to think that unless you get into a heated discussion with someone in very close proximity, even being on deck is probably a relatively inhospitable environment for the virus. But that's just non-expert speculation. The other point thathas been made is that it takes some time being exposed for the virus to actually infect someone. So if you are scoring a meet next to an infected person, then yeah, probably not so safe. If you are interacting with an official right before or after a swim, probably okay. Anecdotally, a kid in a lane next to my son was coughing for a 1.5 hour practice. 6 kids (including her) was contact traced and quarantined for exposure. Other than the one who was infected while practicing (and like I said - coughing!), and presumably contagious, no one else developed any symptoms, and for privacy reasons, I don't know who the others were, so I don't know who just quarantined the whole time (other than a friend of his who was also contact traced), but no one tested positive. We had my son tested, he tested negative. Disclaimer - I don't believe in anecdotes if there is any statistical information available. But I did figure I'd share what a risked exposure in a training environment looks like. Again, engineer, not an epidimi.....epadeemio......virus researcher. On the kids' club team's board, so I was dealing with trying to learn as much as we could when figuring out how to set up protocols to let the kids back in the water.
  • I guess I should have put the epidemiologist question in another paragraph, because I knew you are an engineer! ;) What I meant was, separate from you, are there any epidemiologists on the forums? We have several doctors of various expertise, so that's a start. I just know you have had personal experience with all this, because of your kids, so I was curious what you thought. In addition to your response, I am hoping some experts will weigh in. I know YOU know. I just want to be adamantly clear that of there are people lurking that I am *NOT* the subject matter expert. Just someone who because of my kids' activities, have had a lot of materials at my disposal that go beyond stuff found at Holiday Inn Expresses!
  • Oh, lord, I'm an engineer. I guess I should have put the epidemiologist question in another paragraph, because I knew you are an engineer! ;) What I meant was, separate from you, are there any epidemiologists on the forums? We have several doctors of various expertise, so that's a start. I just know you have had personal experience with all this, because of your kids, so I was curious what you thought. In addition to your response, I am hoping some experts will weigh in.