European Studies Link Children’s Lung Damage with Chlorine Use
A Swedish study and a Belgium study reported that children swimming in pools,
especially indoor pools, suffered from an increased incidence of lung damage when compared with children not using pools. Both studies concentrated on the effects of inhaling byproduct gases resulting from chlorine’s interaction with organic substances such as urine and perspiration. Those byproducts, which include nitrogen trichloride and chloramines, may have been the cause of the damage.
The Swedish study centered around the distribution of a lung protective protein that is produced in the body in a study group that was comprised largely of children around the age of 10. The Belgium study looked at approximately four times more children of the same age that were exposed to indoor pools exclusively. The Belgium study concluded that exposed children could be more susceptible to developing asthma if their lung tissue was damaged by gases. (Chemical Regulation Reporter, 6/9/03).
