It’s official – Kits pool is open for the season. Now all you need to worry about is eating your meals well before you take a dip… or do you, read the below excerpt from the Straight Dope.
From the 1930s through the 1950s water safety experts believed swimming after eating would lead to stomach cramps that would double you over in agony, causing you to sink like a stone. This was thought to be a leading cause of drowning. As late as 1956 the Red Cross water safety manual devoted several pages to the topic complete with staged photo of a gasping “victim.” That same year, however, University of Georgia swim coach B.W. Gabrielsen published a book called ‘Facts on Drowning Accidents’ that revealed that swimming after eating was implicated in fewer than 1 percent of drownings. Thereafter the wait-an-hour hysteria began to subside. It’s now thought stomach cramps are rare. It still isn’t a good idea to do strenuous swimming right after eating lest you exhaust yourself. But a quick dip in the pool after dinner is harmless.
Last modified: June 2, 2008
