Years of stomach problems and I have finally found the source!

[MummyJE]

I just wanted to share this amazing breakthrough!

Since my DS was about 3 years old he has been having problems with his stomach and we have tried numerous diets, seen specialists, taken allergy tests but nothing ever seemed to work to get it under control. Last year we noticed his stomach problems vanished completely and I put it down to an age thing. Then after one swimming lesson it all came back overnight and it took about 10 days to get back to normal. He started swimming at the age of 3 and absolutely loves it so I feel really upset that it is the chlorinated water that is having this affect on him.

Has anyone else heard of this?

Rather than the chlorine, could it be that he swallows a great deal of water when he swims?

He would have to be swallowing a hell of a lot of water when swimming to be affected. The symptoms would be nausea, vomiting or diarrhoea. Bear in mind, the chlorine in pools would be kept to a safe level. Chlorine is in tap water too.

He is 8 years old now so he tells me the water just gets in his mouth and he swallows a little. What else could it be down to if he has been so well all this time? He is quite active so it's not down to exertion levels. No skin rash like you would expect.
We have literally tried so much over the past 5 years and this just never crossed my mind.

What are his symptoms? Chlorine poisoning can be serious, especially over a prolonged period. Despite the chlorine (used to eliminate bacteria) there will be low levels of bacteria in the pool which are also harmful. Certain bacterium would cause similar sickness, stomach ache etc.

It's important he isn't swallowing the water.

Is there something he always eats/drinks on swimming days?

Could it not be the way he breathes when swimming? I've noticed this about myself since I've started swimming again post lockdown, after every swim my stomach is massively bloated for 24 hours.. i think I'm swallowing far too much air!

To start with he was shooting his poos out like torpedos then after a few months it turned to mucus, slimy and watery poo which stank ! The doctors did Celiac test, we tried food elimination, GF, dairy free, everything!! We discovered a long the way that he also can't handle something in squash so all he drinks is water and pure juice mixed with water. Most holidays he had a bad tummy every day which was a nightmare. I did notice that after swimming he often had a bad poo and he was swimming everyday on hols.

After his first swimming lesson back from lockdown it took 10 days for his poos to return to normal! He doesn't do anything different on swim days and it just can't be coincidental.

There's a bug that survives chlorine called crypto which can cause an upset stomach for weeks after swimming. It comes from faecal matter in swimming pools, maybe your son is just v prone to being affected by it?

If you think there's a correlation then you have two options; stop the swimming or make sure he's not swallowing pool water.

At 8yrs he should be able to stop this habit. Don't fill him with terror but perhaps practice having his face partly submerged and not swallowing, and spitting out water that does accidentally get in his mouth. He could even practice that in the bath, with supervision.

Some pools are heavily chlorinated. Signs of over chlorinated water are red, running eyes, burning feeling in throat and nose, coughing, wheezing and nausea.

In general, his problems sound just like toddler diarrhoea, which can be exacerbated by excessive water consumption. My 4 year old is almost fully over toddler diarrhoea but will get looser stools if he drinks too much- and he does sometimes glug the pool or bath water given half a chance 🤮

Also td is made worse by squash, juice, sugar, high fibre.

Argh just seen he is 8 now (just saw 3 🤦‍♀️) so may not be relevant, don't know how long it can last, but they usually grow out of it by 4/5

I hear you. I have a child with chronic abdominal problems. People can be sensitive to almost anything and he could have an allergy type to reaction to chlorine, why not? I’m glad you’ve found out what it is but sorry that it means he has to choose between comfort and an enjoyable activity.

We have decided to stop his swimming lessons and his teacher told him to practise his breathing in the bath water. We will most definitely have to deal with pool water at some point in the very near future but as long as we know what it is causing the stomach issues we can at least avoid these situations.

interesting.

Allergies are crazy things. We were so relived when we discovered dairy was the problem for DD. it was like a lightbulb going off!

I hope it isnt the pool, but then I hope it is too, as at least you know what it is.

What @jerrywesterby said. Family member had same issues and found out at the age of 8 that it’s caused by swallowing air. Now has to use a contraption to encourage breathing from the tummy

I was wondering about crypto too - are you in a position to try some wild swimming instead?

DH had exactly this as a kid! Just swallowed too much pool water for his delicate stomach to cope.

An allergy to chlorine would also present on the skin; itching, hives or a burning sensation. I think it's more likely that the chlorinated water is being swallowed too much. It's an irritant like bleach.

Chlorine kills off bacteria and by ingesting it frequently he may have knocked his natural "good" bacteria levels out of balance. It may be worth trying pro biotics to achieve some equilibrium.

You can get pro biotic drinks, yogurts etc. There is some debate over their effectiveness but no harm trying.

I would certainly follow his teacher's advice to break his habit of swallowing water by practicing at home. If you imagine he's swallowing a gulp every five minutes in the water, then over an hour that's around half a litre.

My son when little always used to get diarrhoea after being in the pool for a couple of hours. Not sure if it was the amount of water that he swallowed or the chlorine. But it has disappeared now.

Swimming pool makes me poop. I assumed it was a warm water moving muscles thing but it always has.

I swim 3/4 times a week and I’m the same! I don’t swallow much water but I do swallow a lot of air compared to normal breathing, I’m always really gassy after too (from both ends).
Usually by the time I’m in the shower after my tummy is feeling heavy and I can’t wait to get home and use the toilet... the ones at swimming aren’t very private!