Don't be a pool party pooper

Outbreaks of a parasitic infection linked to swimming pools and water playgrounds are increasingly being reported to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), with twice as many outbreaks in 2016 as in 2014.
The Cryptosporidium parasite can spread when people swallow something that has come into contact with the feces of a sick person, such as pool water contaminated with diarrhea. At least 32 outbreaks caused by Cryptosporidium (also known as “Crypto”) linked to swimming pools or water playgrounds in the United States were reported in 2016, compared with 16 outbreaks in 2014, according to preliminary data published May 18 by the CDC. Twenty Crypto outbreaks linked to swimming were reported in 2011, 16 in 2012, and 13 in 2013.
CDC says it is not clear whether the number of outbreaks is growing or whether better surveillance is leading to increased detection.
Crypto is the most common cause of diarrhea. It is not easily killed by chlorine and can survive up to 10 days in properly treated water. Swallowing just a mouthful of Crypto-contaminated water can make otherwise healthy people sick for up to three weeks with watery diarrhea, stomach cramps, nausea, and vomiting, and can lead to dehydration.
“To help protect your family and friends from Crypto and other diarrhea-causing germs, do not swim or let your kids swim if sick with diarrhea,” said Michele Hlavsa, R.N., chief of CDC’s Healthy Swimming Program. “Protect yourself from getting sick by not swallowing the water in which you swim.”