Is Swimming Good or Bad for Acne? Both, and Why You Might Want To Avoid It

There are many reasons why swimming is good for your health. But does swimming help acne too?

If you are a victim of skin breakouts, then you know that the condition is much deeper than just physical. It also eats into your self-esteem a great deal!

When the hair follicles clog up with oil and dead skin cells, it leads to the formation of pimples, blackheads and whiteheads.

Also, note that acne can occur anywhere on the body, but it is most commonly found on the face, neck, chest, and back.

Acne affects people of all ages, but it is most commonly associated with puberty. During puberty, the body produces more hormones, which can cause an increase in sebum production in the skin.

This excess oil combines with dead skin cells, dust, bacteria, and other things to clog the pores. The clogging is what then leads to the development of acne.

Don’t let acne stop you from swimming. If you can swim with a yeast infection, and you can also swim in the sea with a herpes outbreak, you can sure swim with pimples.

Does swimming in a chlorine pool help acne?

Swimming could be good for acne.

Let’s see why we use chlorine in our pools first to understand why it could be good for acne. When there has been a wash down into the pool, we shock the swimming water with chlorine. We do this to kill bacteria.

So, chlorine kills bacteria! But be mindful of how soon after shocking pool you should swim.

Some types of bacteria cause acne. Thus, if bacteria cause your acne breakout, the chlorine in the pool will kill the bacteria.

There… nipped the problem in the bud, or is it at the root?

But there is a small challenge with this. There always is, isn’t there?

The chlorine in the water doesn’t distinguish between good and bad bacteria. Therefore, it will kill the acne-causing bacteria as well as the good bacteria.

This creates a serious imbalance in your skin. So what does the skin do? It breaks out, again!

More acne!

So, swimming might help with pimples, or it might not.

Does swimming help clear skin breakout?

Swimming is a popular form of exercise with hundreds of health benefits. For instance, swimming 3 times a week results in weight loss, toning, and other physical benefits.

As a calorie burner, swimming is better than most other water sports, except perhaps stand-up paddleboarding that works out all muscle groups.

When it comes to improving your heart rate and lung health (cardiovascular health), swimming is king. It ensures there is a proper flow of nutrient- and oxygen-rich blood to different parts of the body, including the brain.

But, back to the question of the day, will swimming help with acne? The opinion out there is divided.

Some people claim that swimming helps clear up their acne. And yet others say that swimming causes acne breakouts.

Well, as it turns out, there is a potential downside to swimming when it comes to acne. The chlorine in swimming pools can be harsh on the skin. It also causes irritation and dryness.

A dry skin sends a signal to the sebum-producing cells, that the skin needs more oil. Therefore, they go into overdrive mode and you end up with extra-oily skin.

People pee in the swimming pools, making the water a breeding ground for microbes. Since acne breakouts cause small lesions on the skin, these bacteria might get into the skin and eventually your bloodstream.

See all those people wearing I pee in pools t-shirts and other merchandise? It is because people get dirty in the pools.

In that case, perhaps you would do better to avoid swimming altogether if you have open wounds caused by acne.

Is swimming good for pimples: What experts say

Even among the experts on skin health and acne, there is no clear explanation of how swimming can help with acne.

Dr. David Lortscher – the founder of Curology and a dermatologist, says there is really no authoritative answer regarding how swimming in a saltwater or chlorine pool helps with a skin breakout.

In addition, Dr. Lortscher adds that while there are no clear indications that swimming helps with acne, there is also no proof that it makes acne worse.

But because swimming improves blood circulation and decreases inflammation, it can help to make the skin healthy.

The chlorine found in swimming pools can be irritating to the skin, but that it is not necessarily harmful. Dr. Lortscher recommends rinsing off with fresh water after swimming to help remove any chlorine residue from the skin.

Other skin health experts agree with this. For instance, Dr. Debra Jaliman, a dermatologist also says that while swimming does not help acne, it doesn’t hurt it either.

It is best for swimmers who have acne to seek medication.

Protecting your skin when swimming with pimples

Unfortunately, while swimming neither hurts nor helps acne, you will not be able to swim in your above-ground swimming pool anyhow. You might need to prepare more than a person who has a healthy skin.

Here are a few things that you can do to minimize the potential negative effects of swimming on your skin:

Apply waterproof sunscreen

Waterproof sunscreen for swimming is going to protect your skin from getting into direct “contact” with the water. That is why it is referred to as “waterproof.”

• Clean the face and other acne-prone areas with clean water, make it plain water, no soap.
• Dry your face with a clean towel.
• Apply the sunscreen before getting into the pool. Be sure to let it set, so give yourself about 30 minutes.

After swimming, reapply the sunscreen after every 2 hours.

The best sunscreen is not only going to help with pimples, but it will also reduce black spots, protect your skin from UV rays and keep your skin healthy in other ways.

Don’t be too touchy-touchy on your face

It is possible that the chlorine in the swimming pool water could have killed the bacteria that cause acne.

When you get out of the pool, and you touch things such as the handrails, home clothes, smartphone, deck chairs, and so on, your hands collect other nasty bacteria. They reintroduce these bacteria to your face, when you keep touching it.

These same bacteria can cause, or make your acne worse.

Clean up before and after swimming

Showering before swimming can help remove any dirt, oil, or makeup from your skin that could potentially clog your pores.

When you shower after swimming, it will help to remove chlorine or other chemicals that could be lodged in the pores. If ignored, these could irritate your skin.

Generally, everyone should clean up before and after using the pool. It is also one of the recommendations for preventing chlorine damage on blonde hair.

Wearing a swim cap might help

Choose a silicone or latex swimming cap to protect your hair. Too much exposure to chlorine can damage your hair, and you don’t want that to happen.

Also, long hair gets in touch with the water, and then it falls on your face. Therefore, even if you are trying to keep your face out of the water, the hair still adds chlorine to it.

Use a gentle cleanser

When washing your face after swimming, use a gentle cleanser, one that does not contain harsh chemicals or fragrances.

The cleanser will help to remove any excess oil or chlorine residue without irritating your skin.

Apply moisturizer on your skin

Chlorine and other chemicals found in swimming pools can dry out your skin. To help with that, please apply your natural moisturizer after swimming. It will keep your skin hydrated.

Does swimming in the ocean help acne?

So much about swimming in chlorine water with acne… but does swimming in the sea help acne?

Many sources say that ocean water exfoliates the skin, and helps with pimples. But we take a different stance here. We say it might help and again, it might not.

So yes, swimming the ocean might be good for acne. Well, it could be, if the water could be pure ocean water.

But in this case, it is not! There is sewage, petrol waste, pesticides, agricultural chemicals and other types of contamination in the seawater.

It also contains a high quantity of bacteria as opposed to chlorine pool water. Thus, it could possibly make your acne breakout even worse.

If you are going to swim in the sea, you will need to take a few precautions. Similar to swimming in the pool, cleanse your skin, apply a waterproof sunscreen, and then hit the water.

That is going to give you a little bit of protection, not enough, but protection all the same.

After getting out of the ocean, clean up immediately, and keep reapplying the sunscreen every two hours.

Swim with pimples in chlorine water vs saltwater

We have already established how chlorine pools might help with pimples.

Now, if you have a saltwater pool in your home, you might wonder whether it is better for skin breakout than a chlorinated one.

It might be more helpful.

Saltwater pools contain some chlorine too, enough to kill bacteria. So, your skin is not going to be exposed to bacteria.

But in this case, the chlorine does not produce the chemical smell that is in the chlorinated swimming pools.

The saltiness in the saltwater pool is not the same as the salt quantity in the seawater. But it helps by exfoliating the skin, and the magnesium, potassium and calcium in the saltwater prevents inflammation.

Final thoughts

As you have seen here, the jury is still out there on whether swimming can help with skin breakouts.

Some people swear swimming in the open water (ocean) helped them clear acne. Others swear that the chlorine pool helped them.

But, as we have seen here, only the saltwater pool might help a bit.

Thus, it is better to remain a little skeptical regarding this. Most importantly, please carry on with your dermatologist-recommended skincare routine for acne.

Remember to clean up before and after getting into the swimming pool.