Do chlorine allergies really exist?

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Rollercoastr

Rollercoastr

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May 18, 2016
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West Bloomfield, MI
My aunt visited over Thanksgiving. My Mom had told her something about my pool that apparently made it sound like I didn't use chlorine, so she was eager to swim. When I corrected that, my aunt changed her mind about swimming, citing an allergy to chlorine. I suggested that she may be allergic to CC instead and offered a brief explanation and test results, but she had already changed her mind and didn't want to risk a reaction while traveling the next day.

Are some people actually allergic to chlorine, or is it more of a sensitivity to CC (which has been my impression)?
 
RC,

Anything is possible, but I suspect that her "Allergy" was not diagnosed by a Doctor, but rather her reaction to swimming in a non-balanced pool. She just assumes she has a chlorine allergy and I doubt you will be able to change her mind.. Her loss, not yours.. :mrgreen:

Thanks,

Jim R.
 
There has to be people with an actual chlorine issue. Many people probably blame the chlorine when it’s actually other things associated with the pool like CC but some of them are right. I know 3 people with pretty bad eczema. One adult and 2 kids. You can split hairs with them all you want that they have an irritation or aversion instead of an ‘actual allergy’, but if they are having a flair up, they might as well live naked in a bubble because most anything that touches their sensitive skin will leave them various levels of messed up.
 
I thought I had a sensitivity to chlorine when I first bought my house/pool. Turns out I was just "allergic" to the pool guy's MO! I had inherited him with the house, and left him in place because I didn't know the first thing about pools. Due to profit considerations and employee turnover, many pool care companies need to staff with young, inexperienced people, quickly trained, that don't really know how to care for pool water. They come once a week, which, without automation, isn't usually enough to maintain properly balanced water. So that the chem's don't dissipate too much before the next visit, they'll over-compensate by putting in more chlorine and/or acid than your pool actually needs. So for the first couple days the pool has too much chemicals in it, and then not enough during the last few days. And that cycle repeats every week! Once I added a salt water generator and an acid dispensing system, and started using TFPC, which together maintain near-perfect chemical balance every day, my "allergies" went away. And there was some anecdotal evidence that my skin was reacting to bad pH management, not the chlorine level.

Now, that won't solve for someone convinced of her own condition, not much you can do about that...
 
JamesW said:
www.mayoclinic.org

Eczema bleach bath: Can it improve my symptoms?

A diluted bleach bath may help treat chronic eczema.
www.mayoclinic.org www.mayoclinic.org

People can be allergic to almost anything.
Click to expand...

Right in that article :
You may experience dry skin if you use too much bleach or take bleach baths too often. If your skin is cracked or very dry, any bath — including a bleach bath — may be painful. Talk to your doctor before trying an eczema bleach bath.

I was just using eczema as one of the many possible situations. Most folks have at least heard of it. But when even the mayoclinic can't say for sure one way or the other, it certainly leaves the possibilty open. Chances are Rollercoastr's aunt is just sensitive, probably not even to the chlorine, but there has to be people who are allergic in some capacity.
 
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