How Do They Know If Your Child Is Potty Trained?

[ladypalmtree]

The risk of E-Choli is too much...do not let your non potty trained offspring in the pools. If another child were to swallow the water it could be fatal...and btw..I would never use the hotubs either. The blow up pool idea is great for the little ones. I never took my kids on a cruise until they were five, and could swim..jmho...:D

[aqhacruiser]

I don't think urine in the pool is the problem as it is sterile. The problem is bacteria (or is it a virus?) in poop that IS NOT held in by the swim diaper. The aren't worried about "floaters", but illness borne by bacteria. So, whether you think anyone will notice or not, if your child is not potty trained they are not allowed in the pools/hot tubs.

 

You are correct. Bacteria such as E.Coli and other bacteria can be found in loose stools of someone infected and it can be spread from person to person if hygeine or handwashing habits are not adequate. This is particurly likely amoung toddlers that are not toilet trained. The CDC lists several sources of infection and they include swimming in or drinking sewage contaminated water. These are excerpts taken from the CDC website and the entire info can be found on the CDC website. RCCL will not allow any child they see in diapers or swim diapers/pants in any of the pools as it causes a health risk to other passengers by possibly spreading bacteria found in feces. Besides the possibility of contracting diseases such as this one in a public pool there is a growing concern that those that have the little blow up pools on board should be aware that the water they dump out of it may also be contaminated by bacteria from feces so it's important that it is disposed of properly. The cruiselines are trying to prevent an outbreak of very serious bacterial infections amoung all it's passengers. It may be something people want to consider before putting their child that is not potty trained in a pool shared by other passengers and risking infection and/or spreading a bacterial disease :o

[aqhacruiser]

I didn't realize that cruise ship pools aren't chlorinated, and I will argue that there is a "public fear" of urination (how many times have you seen the "Don't pee in my pool" signs etc?) but I agree that poop, vomit (and other random body fluids) are the only "real" issue as far as I'm concerned. Still, in a chlorinated pool (which I guess cruise ships aren't (???) I find this hard to believe, how do they keep them clean? ozone?) I don't think the risk of getting some fecal bacteria in your system is probably any more than it is when you eat at a restaurant, or shake hands with a stranger, or .... the list goes on.

 

Either way, it doesn't much matter to me because, like I said, my son's been potty trained forever! :) yippee! But I was just a bit surprised that they didn't allow them because all of the public pools around here allow swim diapers and I've never heard any report of an e.coli outbreak from a pool being contimainated or anything. But then again, we chlorinate our pools. not sure why cruise lines supposedly dont.

 

Rccl uses salt water on the ships I know of but they may have some that use fresh so you have to check the ship you are going on. Some cruiselines dump pool water everynight and refill with salt water on a rotating basis so there will be one pool filled for people to use. It does make sense when you think about using the salt water because otherwise there would be alot of chlorine and other pool chemicals being dumped in the ocean. Land based public pools are treated with many potent chemicals constantly and they also use special filter systems to rid contaminents from the water and that greatly lessens the chance of bacterial infections so that is why it is unlikely you will hear of a bacterial outbreak. I would note for those concerned with hot tubs, I've never seen a public hot tub that does not have signs posted that say no children under 16 allowed yet I've repeatedly seen parents let their little kids go in them. A properly chemical treated and filitered hot tub should pose no risk for bacterial infections however it is common for people to catch UTI's, infections, etc. from public hot tubs due to poor maintenence on them. The warnings that are posted to exclude younger children in a public hot tub is because the very hot temperatures can increase their blood pressure to higher levels than they should be. Even adults with much more body mass have to be careful of the time limit they expose themselves to the heat. Yet, I have seen parents scream at hotel staff's many different times if they are asked to remove their kids from a hot tub. Signs are posted and yet ingnored. If a public hot tub is not being maintained like it should be or there are too many people in it and the tub is getting a high rate of use and filters can't keep up with body oils and dirt, the smaller water mass will promote bacteria quicker and and as a child does not have a fully developed immune system compared to an adult, kids are at a greater risk for infections. :o

[glen tev]

I have a stupid question.I always hear "the u.s health department"regulates this and that.Other than the 3 NCL ships,don't all these ships fly a foreign flag.Panama,Bahamas etc.The cigarette,booze and other laws(taxes) go out the window when you set sail.I often wonder if this is a ruse that they hide behind.I've read about u.s attorneys trying to sue the cruise industry for this and that and the answer usually is "you don't have any juristiction"because were registered to another country.Anyone have the answer to this i would love to hear it.Thanks