ATLANTA (WCMH) – It’s that time of the year! Pools are opening up all across the country. But wait before you dive in. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says those swimming pools are gross.

Okay, so those aren’t the exact words the CDC used, but the agency might as well have. It says thousands of public pools, hot tubs, lazy rivers and water playground are shut down every year due to health and safety violations.

Some of those violations include improper pH levels, safety equipment issues and problems with the disinfectant concentration (the chemicals that are supposed to keep gross stuff out of the water). The full report even gets scarier, talking about how improperly kept pools “can lead to disability or even death.”

The biggest violators were kiddie pools and wading pools. The CDC says one in every five of those gets shut down at some point.

In all, the CDC says 80 percent of all swimming locations end up with at least one violation when inspected.

Of course, this isn’t the first time the CDC has issued a warning about swimming in the pool. Last year, it warned about people getting red eyes or even skin irritation after taking a long dip. The cause? Body fluids (yes, we mean urine) mixing with the chlorine in the water.

As the concentration of by-products in the water increases, they move into the surrounding air as well. Breathing air loaded with irritants can cause a variety of symptoms depending on the concentration of irritants in the air and amount of time the air is breathed.”

So what’s the best way to protect yourself from all this supposedly disgusting pool water?

The CDC recommends you first take a shower before getting in the pool. It also recommends you take your bathroom breaks out of the water.