Gyms and spas should be about getting in shape and having fun, not worrying about bacteria and infection. Yet hazards do exist, including germs such as Cryptosporidium, which can be found in recreation water.
Gyms, pools and hot tubs may look clean and usually are, but can sometimes seethe with dangerous (albeit microscopic) debris. Even though gyms are swept, mopped, and wiped of sweat, hundreds of surfaces such as equipment seats, props, shower handles and yoga mats can harbor days, weeks or months of layered germs.
In gyms the problem isn’t sweat itself, as most sweat is clean. The problem is that perspiration forms nourishing pools for bacteria to breed in. Speaking of pools (as well as hot tubs and natural bodies of water), if the conditions are right they also provide sultry procreation spots for germs.
This section teaches proper gym equipment cleaning techniques that will help minimize your exposure to potentially harmful bacteria. Because, let’s face it, the most risky thing anyone should contract from a gym or spa is muscle soreness or a stranger’s phone number.
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, commonly referred to as MRSA, is a type of staph that causes infections resistant to a class of common antibiotics that includes methicillin, penicillin, amoxicillin and oxacillin. While MRSA infections were traditionally associated with extended hospital stays, they are now becoming more common in everyday life. In fact, this newer form of MRSA known as community-associated MRSA ...
With beach-season looming, the fitness bug is motivating Americans to fill area gyms in droves, all hoping to buff up before the warm-weather season of fun gets into full swing.People who workout at gyms should know that the effort to get the perfect physique comes with the heightened risk of contracting community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, the potentially deadly superbug known ...
Chattem, Inc. announced Feb. 8, 2008, that it is conducting a nationwide recall of some Icy Hot Heat Therapy products, because it has received consumer reports of skin irritation, first-, second- and third-degree burns resulting from consumer use or possible misuse of these products. All lots and all sizes of the following Icy Hot Heat Therapy products have been recalled: Icy ...
Authorities are recognizing a national increase in Naegleria (pronounced (nuh-GLEER-e-uh), which is a free-living ameba that can enter victims through the nose, travel to the brain and spinal cord, cause inflammation and kill them. The ameba is usually acquired during water-related activities such as swimming underwater, diving, or participating in other sports where water goes up the ...
The SportsAide System being applied to the Detroit Lions training facility. (PRNewsFoto/SportCoatings) ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- The Detroit Lions are kicking off their upcoming 2007 sports season with the high-tech, antimicrobial treatments of SportsAide(R) and FabricAide(TM) throughout their training facilities from industry leaders SportCoatings and Pioneer Athletics. Provided by SportCoatings of Rochester Hills, Mich. and sold by Pioneer Athletics ...
A Nevada television station reporter tested two Las Vegas homes for various kinds of disease-causing bacteria, swabbing tile floors, carpeted areas, the soles of shoes, and even the family pet’s paws. The samples were taken to the Silver State Analytical Labs and scientists there found mold, fungus and coliform found ...
BALTIMORE -- New vaccine requirements will affect anyone who is applying for an immigrant visa for entry into the U.S. and anyone seeking adjustment of status for permanent residence. Applicants must show proof of vaccinations against vaccine-preventable diseases, as recommended by the U.S. Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. Passport Health, ...
As Midwest floodwaters recede and clean-up efforts get underway, the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) offers advice to help reduce the risk of infection:Nothing beats hand hygiene – It’s critical to remember to practice basic hand hygiene during the emergency period. Always wash your hands with ...
Georgia Tech associate professor Pinar Keskinocak, graduate student Faramroze Engineer and executive secretary of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices of the CDC Larry Pickering (left to right) display the new online tool they developed that allows parents and pediatricians to ensure that the missed vaccines and future vaccines are ...
Research shows that only 20 percent of consumers use thermometers, and a mere 30 percent are aware that they should have them in their refrigerators. Several experts addressed home-based food safety issues in “Consumers’ Refrigerators: A Danger Zone” Monday at the Institute of Food Technologists’ annual meeting and food expo ...
Bacteria and viruses are the microscopic organisms – otherwise known as germs -- that are responsible for causing and transmitting illness and disease. These microbes are so small, that according to the American Society for Microbiology, if the smallest of all microbes was the size of a baseball, an average bacterium would then be the size of the pitcher's mound, and just one of the millions of cells that make up your body would be the size of the ballpark!
