The CDC Just Grossed Everyone Out With An Absolutely Poop-tastic Summer GIF

Ed Mazza
·3 min read

The CDC left a mark on social media this weekend as the agency shared a GIF with a very memorable way to urge good hygiene in swimming pools this summer: 

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The agency notes on its website that “diarrhea is the most common illness spread through recreational water,” adding that some of the germs behind the squirt can survive in chlorinated water for days. 

The CDC even offered a very descriptive passage about how those illnesses happen:

“Tiny amounts of poop are rinsed off swimmers’ bottoms as they swim through the water. If someone with infectious diarrhea (which can contain up to one billion germs) gets in recreational water, germs can be washed off their bottom and contaminate the water. These germs can make someone else sick if they swallow even a small amount of contaminated water.” 

Obviously, don’t go into the water if you have diarrhea. The CDC adds that if it’s caused by Cryptosporidium, wait until two weeks after the infection. 

Even without diarrhea, the agency adds two very important pieces of advice: “Don’t poop in the water” and “Don’t swallow the water.”

And if that’s not enough, they have an entire webpage dedicated to what poop- and pee-filled pools can do to your eyes and lungs.

But for many, it was all about the GIF. 

The agency has used some version of the image for years now ― but this week’s tweet is spreading across social media:

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This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.

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