Predictors and Effects of Risk Perception Among Chicago Area Waterways Recreation Users

Incidental contact water recreation, such as boating, kayaking, canoeing, fishing and rowing, on the Chicago Area Waterways is associated with reports of acute gastrointestinal illness and eye symptoms. Risk perception influences symptom reporting of full contact recreators, but little is known about how risk perception effects symptom reporting among incidental contact recreators. Additionally, determinants of perceived risk among recreators have not been analyzed. This study aims to analyze factors that influence health risk perception among incidental contact wastewater recreators. Further, we investigate how perceived risk impacts symptom reporting. We used data from the Chicago Health, Environmental Exposure, and Recreation Study which was a prospective cohort study conducted to investigate five health outcomes among three groups: individuals who recreated on the effluent dominated Chicago Area Waterways (CAWS), individuals who recreated on general use waters (GUW), and those who participated in recreation off of the water, or unexposed group (UNX). Two of the five health outcomes, acute gastrointestinal illness and eye symptoms were examined in this current study. Recreators rated their level of risk perception of CAWS recreation on a 0-10 scale. Data analysis consisted of logistic regression, and chi-square analyses. Perception of health risk was found to be an independent predictor of AGI and eye symptoms among CAWS recreators. Several variables, such as age, turbidity levels and getting face and hands wet during recreation were found to be predictors associated with a higher odds of reporting high perceived health risk. Among high health risk perceivers, increasing face wetness was associated with an increase of AGI reports. High perceived health risk was also attributed to 40% of AGI and eye symptom reports. Perceived risk is an important factor to consider when analyzing symptom reporting among incidental contact water recreators, particularly on effluent dominated waters.