Parasitic Bug In Illinois Is Contaminating Community Pools

Beware Illinois pool and waterpark enthusiasts. There is a parasitic bug on the loose in our great state that could ruin all your fun in the sun. The best way to stay safe is to equip yourself with knowledge. Scroll on for more details.

Just about every year, there is some sort of waterborne disease outbreak, and this summer is no different. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention is reporting a 13 percent increase in their tracking of a parasite that can turn a day at the pool into a week on the toilet.

Wikimedia Commons/VNiles

The parasite is known as cryptosporidium, and it is a single-cell organism that lives in poop. It is cockroach-strong and can survive for days even in highly chlorinated pools.

Wikimedia Commons/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

For this reason, it is highly advised that you do not drink the water in the pool. Most people aren’t in there slurping it down with a straw, but it does accidentally get in your mouth sometimes, so please try not to swallow it, or this could get inside you.

Wikimedia Commons/Punlop Anusonpornperm

Outbreaks often spike in July and August as more people head to the pools, despite their health conditions. It is well known that at least half of the people that visit community pools and water parks do not shower or even rinse off before getting in the water.

Flickr/Brisbane City Council

Additionally, many people who are sick with a cryptosporidium infection do not realize it and will go to the pool after having diarrhea or take their babies who are experiencing it. And if the parasitic bug lives in poop, and the poop gets in the water, it’s only a matter of time before the pool becomes one giant community toilet/tub.

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It’s just something to think about before you go diving headfirst into your local pool. It only takes a few of these germs to get sick.

U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Eric Burks

The symptoms of infection are watery diarrhea, dehydration, lack of appetite, nausea, vomiting, and fever. You don’t want to spend your summer feeling like crud. Keep yourself safe and don’t ingest the pool water.

Pexels/John Johnson

Of course, if you’re brave (or trust yourself not to swallow the water), here are 10 epic waterparks in Illinois at which you can try your luck.