1 in 6 adults admit to urinating in a public swimming pool according to a survey produced in partnership with light-hearted swimming website The Wobbly Block.
17% of the UK public have urinated in a public pool, with men (21%) more likely to own up than women (14%). Interestingly, exactly the same figure – 17% – of the U.S. population also admits to having urinated in a public swimming pool, according to research conducted on behalf of the Water Quality and Health Council. The youngest age group of 18 to 24s are the most forthcoming in admitting to going for a wee in a swimming pool (30%) and those aged over 55 (8%) the most reluctant.
The most common indiscretions are entering the pool without showering first (47%), swimming for more than 30 minutes without stopping (39%) and colliding with another swimmer (39%). 22% admit to swimming within an hour of eating a big meal and 17% say that they have run on poolside: both behaviours generally advised against by local rules.
A reckless 11% say that they have dived in without knowing how deep the water is. Other transgressions include passionately kissing, to which 14% admit, and, bizarrely, smoking, which one in twenty (5%) claim to have done at some point in a public pool.
