"The 33"-Road Bike Racing - In case you planning to hit a jacuzzi after the race/ride

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Better think twice before soothing those aching muscles in a whirlpool bath or hot tub. A new study shows that whirlpool bathtubs can be a breeding ground for a host of disease-causing bacteria.

Dr. Rita B. Moyes a microbiologist at Texas A & M University tested 43 water samples from both private and public whirlpool bathtubs. "Every tub tested had some kind of microbial growth," she told Reuters Health.
"And I was just getting the few organisms I was testing for, so it is probably just the tip of the iceberg as far as what is really present. Also, I did no viral testing," Moyes emphasized.
In 95 percent of the tubs, bacteria derived from feces were present, while 81 percent had fungi and 34 percent contained potentially deadly staphylococcus bacteria.
Moyes explained that a teaspoon of normal tap water contains about 138 bacteria and many samples are bacteria-free. A teaspoon of whirlpool tub water, on the other hand, contains an average of more than 2 million bacteria.
The interior pipes of whirlpool baths that are not filtered or chemically treated, and non-maintained hot tubs, are prime areas for potentially infectious microbes to congregate and grow, Moyes noted. These organisms often form a biofilm - a community of organisms, which work together and are more resistant to cleaners.
When the jets are switched on, the bacteria-packed water gets blown into the tub. "Due to the movement of the water, an aerosol is created that carries these organisms down into your lungs or other orifices - something that doesn't happen in a regular tub," Moyes explained.
The bacteria found in whirlpool baths can lead to a number of diseases, including urinary tract infections, skin infections, and pneumonia.
So who is most at risk? "Of course the young and the old and the immunocompromised should not be exposed, including breathing in the aerosol from outside the tub," Moyes said.
"A chemically maintained hot tub should not be a problem to a healthy person but if you are having recurring infections, consider the tub as a potential source," she added. Moyes' research is published in an online journal called PM Engineer.

Note the article is not about classic hottubs and the like. It is about bathtubs with jacuzzi jets added. The typical hottub is the chemically treated kind that the study finds safe.

Whew..... *sits back down*

ice bath's are better for your muscles anyways :)

Ain't gonna happen ....sorry I'll ice the muscles but I'm not plopping into an ice bath. No sir...lol

Also... get an immune system and fear not. You should be very very glad they don't do a test on your tooth brush, keyboard, mouse, or your fingers that you just ate some McDo with.

Also... get an immune system and fear not. You should be very very glad they don't do a test on your tooth brush, keyboard, mouse, or your fingers that you just ate some McDo with.

Agreed. It's not the bugs that get you under. It's the innability to fight them. Don't overtrain, be healthy and take a shower once in a while. You will be fine.

Couple years ago we had an absolutely miserable day on tour.
I felt like hamburger. We pulled into a motel in Camden that had
a heated pool. The gals hit the shower and I jumped in the pool.
The water was almost hot. It felt great! I spent about a half hour stertching in there; and when I got out I felt tons better.

Bring it on.

<Ranting Microbiologist>

No joke! Normal hot tubs are fine as long as they are maintained properly..... hot tub baths really shouldn't even be that much of a worry. Most people wouldn't want to know how much bacteria and fungi is on/in their regualr bathtub. Is it suprising that there are fecal coliforms in the bathwater??? You @ss is in the water right??? wow! what a revelation! The next story will be... "Warning!!! Used toilet paper has fecal bacteria all over it!!! AHHHHH" Something else to think about... there are a couple million bacteria on ever square inch of you skin. Bacteria aren't our enemies :) We'd actually die without them... And no more O2 to breathe... no more carbon or nitrogen cycles.... Sorry... it just kills me when all you see "Antibacterial" everything on TV and in the stores (oh yea... that stuff doesn't really do anything either... just a marketing ploy). Bacteria are bad... blah blah blah. What it comes down to is; wash you hands everyone in a while! Take a shower... and don't drink water from a hottub ;-) You'll likely be just fine!

</Rant over> :)

A new study?

This has been known for years.

But 53x11 is a huge alarmist who's probably stockpiling food next to his sterilized yet cracked CAAD4 (cause you know they ALL break) for when North Korea nukes us.

At least hot tub water may be cleaner than toilet water, which is more than one can state about the ice in your fast food soft drink:

http://gnn.tv/headlines/7618/Restaurant_toilet_water_purer_than_ice_water_student_finds

ice bath's are better for your muscles anyways :)

+1

A new study?

This has been known for years.

Yeah, but they just installed the first jacuzzi in College Station last summer.

Hook 'em!

But 53x11 is a huge alarmist who's probably stockpiling food next to his sterilized yet cracked CAAD4 (cause you know they ALL break) for when North Korea nukes us.

Hey, ask the Aggie microbiologist if the tub water will be safe after the North Koreans drop the big one on us.

ice bath's are better for your muscles anyways :)

try having sex in an ice bath..shrinkage.

Note the article is not about classic hottubs and the like. It is about bathtubs with jacuzzi jets added. The typical hottub is the chemically treated kind that the study finds safe.

There's hot tub systems with powerful short wave ultraviolet light filtration systems too, some use it in combination with ozone.

http://www.cleanerpools.net/images/tech.jpg

I Blame Crap Science like this for the allergy/autoimmune/??? problems we are having today by causing parent to become more and more over protective of their kids. Our kids are not exposed to near the things they need to be for a healthy immune system IMHO. Without getting exposure in small doses when kids finally see thing in mild doses the body over reacts and there are problems.

When I think back just to my youth in the 70's we had a few antibiotics for treatment only now we use them prophylactically everywhere everyday. Have the bug really gotten that bad???

Dip in the river on the way home :)

feces rhymes with species. let's not forget that.

We're on our way to a world where super bacteria will take over the world as antibacterial medicines/soaps/etc no longer work.

<Ranting Microbiologist>

No joke! Normal hot tubs are fine as long as they are maintained properly..... hot tub baths really shouldn't even be that much of a worry. Most people wouldn't want to know how much bacteria and fungi is on/in their regualr bathtub. Is it suprising that there are fecal coliforms in the bathwater??? You @ss is in the water right??? wow! what a revelation! The next story will be... "Warning!!! Used toilet paper has fecal bacteria all over it!!! AHHHHH" Something else to think about... there are a couple million bacteria on ever square inch of you skin. Bacteria aren't our enemies :) We'd actually die without them... And no more O2 to breathe... no more carbon or nitrogen cycles.... Sorry... it just kills me when all you see "Antibacterial" everything on TV and in the stores (oh yea... that stuff doesn't really do anything either... just a marketing ploy). Bacteria are bad... blah blah blah. What it comes down to is; wash you hands everyone in a while! Take a shower... and don't drink water from a hottub ;-) You'll likely be just fine!

</Rant over> :)

Please answer this: Isn't just plain soap "anti-bacterial"? You know, fat mixed with lye until saponification.

I recall learning (in some '101' class) that infant mortality among poor New Yorkers declined as public health education caused hand washing to become more habitual. The impressive result among the poor was attributed to the living conditions of the 19th and much of the 20th centuries in which many families shared a single toilet. The story goes, that's how cholera rates decreased--because the soap killed the microbes.

Does "anti-bacterial" really have some special meaning when it's slapped onto a soap label? Or are they trying to sell the sizzle instead of the steak, as it were?

I love these stupid studies. There's deadly bacteria in your nose that is resistant to most antibiotics. I'm surprised USA TODAY doesn't have a front page story to the tune of "NOSE PICKING CAN END HUMANITY AS WE KNOW IT" or something.

"NOSE PICKING CAN END HUMANITY AS WE KNOW IT"

Let's hope not. :eek:

I'd take my chances.......

if I knew anyone local with a jacuzzi;-(

I ride every week through farmyards and on filthy urban and rural streets. Anyone here think I'd be wiser to stay home and watch more TV?

I Blame Crap Science like this for the allergy/autoimmune/??? problems we are having today by causing parent to become more and more over protective of their kids. Our kids are not exposed to near the things they need to be for a healthy immune system IMHO. Without getting exposure in small doses when kids finally see thing in mild doses the body over reacts and there are problems.

When I think back just to my youth in the 70's we had a few antibiotics for treatment only now we use them prophylactically everywhere everyday. Have the bug really gotten that bad???

Basically what I told my sister-in-law when the rug-rat nephew started shouldering the dog out of the way at the food bowl -- Purina DC is good for a kid's immune system, like dirt and mother's milk. She was frantic; thought we were gonna have to have her sedated. To my knowledge, kid hasn't been sick a day in his life, except for perfectly legitimate reasons like standardized tests at school and choir recitals.

yo moomma certainly did not complain when i cracked her frame! ;-))


But 53x11 is a huge alarmist who's probably stockpiling food next to his sterilized yet cracked CAAD4 (cause you know they ALL break) for when North Korea nukes us.