Is Your Rash from Pools, Hot Tubs or Spas
Hot Tub
Because the rash may not occur for up to forty eight hours, people may not attibute it to going to the hot tub or swimming pool and continue to have this cycle of the red skin rash occur over and over again. As the rash spreads, the solution seems to be to go back and soak longer.
One common chemical that is the root of these reactions is potassium peroxymonosulfate. That is what’s used to treat water in some facilities, though there are other alternatives. Fortunately there are other ways to keep water clean and avoid allergic skin rashes. If you’ve been having a mysterious itchy rash for a while and have been wondering if it was hives, stress rash, eczema skin eruptions, atopic dermatitis etc it’s a good idea to think about this as a source of the rash.
There are also hot tub rashes caused by contaminated water, such as the germ Pseudomonas aeruginosa. This is a common germ in water and soil that can result in a rash.
Unfortunately a lot of the condo managers seem to be ignorant about what chemicals are used in the hot tub and the swimming pool. It takes a lot of persistence to get a straight answer from them or to get redirected to the right person to see if there is a link to the chemical reaction on the skin.
what does hot tub rashes look like and how do you treat it?
People should also be careful because it’s possible to drown in a hot tub. You can fall asleep or even get dizzy so be careful. Also sometimes hair can get caught in drain so know where the emergency switch is. Don’t let kids in a hot tub alone either. Sorry but these are all potential dangers in addition to of course an allergic hot tub rash which is not a picnic.
I would like to see a photo of the rash from potassium peroxymonosulfate. My husband use it in our hot tub. I broke out and they were round itchy and they burned. The doctor is treating me with Fluorouracil Topical Cream. The breakout is on my thighs and legs. I stopped using the hot tub. I have always had sensitive skin and have had in the past contact dermititis.
Went through (major!) hot tub rash, many dr appts and creams and lotions. Worse when we had family visiting. Turns out husband would turn up bromine level on our salt water tub when we had ‘aliens’. He’s now turned it down and added Spa Soft Supreme (available from Hot Tub Essentials). Every time I’d break out, he’d turn it up more, thinking that our water wasn’t clean. Rashes are now gone!