Six Gym Health Hazards

Newsweek Web Exclusive

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  • Posted By: prpslerse @ 02/05/2008 7:12:07 PM

    MRSA is a staff infection that is resistant to a certain medicine. It's all over and it's been around for over a 10 years. Ya, it could come from the gym, the grocery store or even the park. Germs are everywhere. The thing is, if we over protect our bodies is it really helping? Take those antimicrobial soaps and handsanitizer. They do kill the bad germ, but they also kill the bodies natural defences, drying the skin and cracking it. In some In some cases if your never exposed then you never develop immunities.

  • Posted By: madison3 @ 02/05/2008 7:05:18 PM

    Guys come on. I go to the gym everyday and everyone there always cleans the machines when they are done. Germs are everywhere! Why don't you just stay inside the rest of your life...

  • Posted By: prpslerse @ 02/05/2008 7:04:43 PM

    I do believe in frequent hand washing and good personal hygiene, but come on! If our immune systems are never exposed to germs and bacteria then even the most simplistic will be harmful. Our bodies have natural defeneces. When antimicrorbial solutions are uses they kill both the good and the bad. Then your left off in a worse position,

  • Posted By: ever @ 02/05/2008 7:04:07 PM

    how about saunas?
    Any recomendatios?
    Thanks!

  • Posted By: ever @ 02/05/2008 7:03:38 PM

    How about sounas??
    Any recomendations?

  • Posted By: nick'sgirl07 @ 02/05/2008 6:59:51 PM

    yeah bluestar your right!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1 It's so true.

  • Posted By: bluestar @ 02/05/2008 6:55:57 PM

    no no. this article is correct and important! I got MRSA from the gym I used to go to, and all the exposed skin was affected. I see people sweating all over those machines and mats and they dont clean it!!! its nasty!

  • Posted By: nick'sgirl07 @ 02/05/2008 6:54:29 PM

    It's so true that when you go to the gym, there are germs everywhere but then again germs are anywhere you go nowadays. Besides that's what showers are for.

  • Posted By: Da Monganator @ 02/05/2008 6:52:44 PM

    Or Just Don't Go to the Gym. I know how to get a great workout without setting foot in a gym ever. Oh, I too was an avid weight lifter and use to go every day. Until I created a different routine. My name is Mongo Brownlee. If you are interested in getting in touch with me my email is mbrownlee71@yahoo.com. Also I am an actor. You can find out about projects and work that I have done simply by typing Mongo Brownlee in your web search window. Sincerely, Jerry "Mongo" Brownlee

  • Posted By: nick'sgirl07 @ 02/05/2008 6:51:40 PM

    This is all so true, it is so gross when you go to the gym. I guess the average person doesn't really think about all the germs that go from person to person.

  • Posted By: svaihingen @ 02/05/2008 6:47:03 PM

    Newsflash - germs exist!!! They are everywhere. Use common sense - don't panic - don't be paranoid.

    Germs are everywhere - deal with it. Geesh, what a bunch of paranoid clean-freaks.

  • Posted By: svaihingen @ 02/05/2008 6:45:21 PM

    News flash - germs exist in the world - run for the hills.
    While true, germs in the gym is hardly big news - there are germs everywhere. Wash your hands often - don't lick the floor - and you will be more or less healthy.

  • Posted By: Londinium @ 02/05/2008 6:43:55 PM

    Bacteria and viruses in the Gym?

    Go out and be really healthy - do your excercise outside in the fresh hair.

    Communal Gym is for wimps!

  • Posted By: germ-a-fobe @ 02/05/2008 6:43:47 PM

    FANTASTIC!! Thank you for pointing these things out. I actually already did it all except didn't think of band-aiding my cuts, etc. It's always better to be safe than sorry!
    I also wash my hands after my cardio, it's the only time I don't have my gloves on and feel the most exposed and vulnerable. (I wash the gloves along with ALL my gym stuff daily!!)

  • Posted By: newshound247 @ 02/05/2008 4:28:17 PM

    to differ with you polopp and norcalboy ... yes the hazards are lifting wrong ... thats the obvious one ... yet you don't often hear anyone talking about these, especially the open wound, etc. today, many men do not wash their hands after using the restrooms anywhere... they also are not very good about hygiene in locker rooms. as a lifetime athlete who has been in way too many locker rooms, this poses a real health hazard. not to mention at restaurants, or any public restrooms. then, there is the different types of people going to gyms today. many have never been in locker rooms or used exercise/lift equipment. placing your hands on a barbell or universal pull down bar after someone with a cold/flu has just touched it, is not smart. i recently worked out at a 24hr fitness, and the next day got sick for a week. i attributed to exactly this ... i wasn't cautious enough. now, not to sound pansy or anything ... this is about people being ignorant of what they do when the don't wash hands after using the restroom, or when they are not well. so, yes, here are standard solutions: wash hands often, use your own stuff, and wipe down the equipment after you use it, oh, and use work out gloves, don't touch your face when working out ... unless you want to catch a wicked flu from a businessperson just back from an asian trip and working out ... spreading it, i would be a little more cautious and less flippant about these cautions and solutions above. enjoy your workout!

    • Posted By: polopp @ 02/05/2008 4:32:53 PM

      yawn..snore

      • Posted By: womanspirit @ 02/05/2008 6:37:19 PM

        More highly intelligent comments from the peanut gallery I see......

  • Posted By: anastasia_orlova @ 02/05/2008 4:37:11 PM

    Hey guys what's going on??? Where is your respect?? I have not noticed that this particular article was intended to be kind of a discovery for everyone. We all obviously know that germs are everywhere starting from the sink in our houses ending with the gym. I found it useful as I go to the gym quite a lot, and sometimes you get so tired and get so used to so you don't actually give a s**t whether you did your sit ups with or without your own towel underneath. Who the hell knows how many germs the lady worked out before you actually left over there?? I will try and be more careful when I go to the gym though.. thank you for reminding us about basics that we often forget to follow!

    • Posted By: polopp @ 02/05/2008 4:42:24 PM

      Try going to school for a few writing lessons instead of hitting the gym

      • Posted By: womanspirit @ 02/05/2008 6:36:00 PM

        Hey polopp - lighten up man its a message board not an english class - geez - if THAT is the best response you have for this person than you obviously are not that interested in the topic at hand and are here as a nudge and for no other reason - so maybe you should leave and find another board where the topic is something you actually have something interesting to add...

  • Posted By: polopp @ 02/05/2008 4:12:48 PM

    Do these people get paid for this usless information? I mean all their crap is just that, crap! I guess Yahoo has to fill up thier pages with something.

    • Posted By: womanspirit @ 02/05/2008 6:30:46 PM

      crao eh? OK wait - one day you will find that you or someone you know has contracted something disgusting from the gym - use your brains if you have any - most of what is being said here is common sense and the rest is primarilly proven fact - if you choose to ignoreit believing it is being written for the fun of it - it will be your loss - or rather gain - when you gain some bacteria you can't get rid of

  • Posted By: womanspirit @ 02/05/2008 6:28:27 PM

    I use to never wear anything on my feet in the locker room or steam - I got a very bad fungus on my toenails that lasted for years - finally I had to take pills to get rid of it - bad for the liver but had not choice. ALWAYS wear something on your feet - in the locker room its best to keep yourself covered and do not sit on things naked - first of all- YOU are then spreading YOUR germs and precious bodily fluids to tohers and 2nd you will pcik up all sorts of disgusting stuff too. Use disinfectant wipes and towels on the equipment - and always clena up after yourself - don't leave your sweat for the next person to clean -

  • Posted By: ice queen 1.5 @ 02/05/2008 6:27:46 PM

    ok this is so common sense its not funny. Basically if you use a public gym don't be a hog. And personally I would never use a gym shower ever. Just wait till you get home seriously people have we become so dumb a society that we need someone to write an article that is pretty much a guide on how to not be a slob! I thought that this was a serious article about hidden dangers only to read a bunch of tips on how no to be a totally pig. waste of my time

  • Posted By: ofaatu_too @ 02/05/2008 4:43:27 PM

    The reason we get sick so often in this country is because we try to be so "healthy" trying to disinfect ourselves constantly and never develop any immunity to germs. You'd be sick just seeing what people in other countries do with sharing cups, utensils,food,equipment,etc. and never get sick. I go to the gym 4 times a week and don't worry about wiping equipment etc. Haven't gotten sick as long as I remember.

    • Posted By: LoBelle @ 02/05/2008 6:27:34 PM

      Prior to Nov. 2005 I would have agreed that we disinfect too much with our hand sanitizers. And I totally agree that we spend too much time trying to get antibiotics for colds that don't need that type of treatment.
      I've been on that bandwagon for 25+ years. But after experiencing a sibling's battle with MRSA, I choose to err on the side of over disinfecting. We're talking multiple surgeries, ventilators, nursing homes & physical therapy (she had to learn how to walk again from being bedridden for so long). It all started with a lttle pimple. Even now, over a year later, my sister is not quite back to her old self. Please take care of you and the other people at your gym by wiping down the equipment. Request that the gym provide cleansing wipes at all of the equipment stations and use them. Even if your immune system is healthy others may still be working towards that level of good health.

    • Posted By: massspec @ 02/05/2008 4:49:57 PM

      Ofaatu, you have no scientific knowledge and your last biology class was probably high school. You don't build an immunity to germs such as staph. Give someone a little e-coli in "another country" as you say, I guarantee they will be "sick".

      • Posted By: Momof6healthykids @ 02/05/2008 5:04:31 PM

        masspec: You are the one with no scientific knowledge. ofaatu is correct. Pasteur recanted the germ theory before he died, he acknowledged that germs are opportunistic organisms that depend on an unhealthy ennvironment to survive. Someone with a strong immune system can fight off almost anything, whereas someone lacking a strong immune system and loaded with waste will be a perfect breeding ground. Almost 25% of the earth's population died from the Spanish flu. But 75% did not. So its not about exposure, its about being vulnerable. And you apparently are also anal about grammar. Who corrects their typos on the internet? You will stress yourself to death while natives in far away places enjoy each others' company.

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