Women's health in diving

diving does not entail health risks if a series of safety measures are taken. securitythat are generally well studied and defined. Virtually all of the studies on which the safety standards and measures are based have had men as subjects. Are these rules applicable to women?

It is important to keep in mind that in some aspects their constitution differs from that of men. Usually their status can change due to menstrual cycles and the possibility of pregnancy. In this article we will try to answer these questions, based on the most current knowledge that we have in the scientific community.

From the point of view of activities related to diving, the fundamental difference between men and women is their smaller mass and their different body composition. The lower mass and the higher percentage of fat will have, from a theoretical point of view, three important consequences:

Greater buoyancy.
Lower consumption of inspired gases.
Greater storage capacity for inert gases, such as nitrogen, a gas that, as is known, accumulates in fatty tissue and is so important in the formation of bubbles due to pressure changes; and ultimately, in the mechanism of production of decompression illness.

Despite these differences, studies currently carried out using Doppler techniques (which allow determining the quantity and volume of bubbles formed by decompressive changes and the symptoms they produce), do not establish significant differences between both genders.

Probably, the greater storage capacity for inert gases is compensated by the lower consumption of these gases. Whether for this reason or another, based on the studies carried out, the most qualified scientific societies do not establish a greater risk for women compared to men if the standard safety rules are followed.

Pregnancy and diving

During this period, changes in pressure and the increase in concentration and partial pressure of respiratory gases can be harmful. Furthermore, throughout pregnancy a special circumstance occurs: that the fetus does not have a lung filter that purifies without consequences the small bubbles that form in situations of decompression, after having breathed inert gases. This is because there is no pulmonary circulation in the fetus, since the venous blood passes directly to the arterial circulation, and is then oxygenated and purified in the placenta through the umbilical artery.

There is another series of symptoms associated with pregnancy that, to a greater or lesser extent, make any underwater activity difficult or impossible. Greater difficulty compensating may be experienced due to the increased fluid retention associated with pregnancy, which causes a narrowing of the cavities leading to the paranasal sinuses and ears.

Another aspect to highlight is the greater incidence of problems caused by dizziness due to the movement of water. The frequent nausea and vomiting associated with the first months of pregnancy can make breathing under water extremely difficult, with the consequent added danger.

Currently, the unanimous recommendations of experts and the scientific community for pregnant women are:

They can be practiced by pregnant women Surface aquatic activities and small apnea dives, without posing a special risk due to your condition.

Underwater activities that involve prolonged periods of apnea, nor dives with the supply of respiratory gases, should not be carried out. In cases where they are carried out occasionally due to ignorance or accidentally, termination of pregnancy is not indicated as there is no conclusive evidence that adverse effects occur in these cases.

After a normal birth, the mother should wait three or four weeks to dive again, in order to avoid possible vaginal infections due to contact with the water before the completely closed the wounds of childbirth. If delivery requires cesarean section, it is advisable to wait about eight weeks before restarting this activity.

It is also advisable to assess the loss of physical condition produced by pregnancy and subsequent childbirth and not rush the practice before having fully recovered the previous physical state.

Breastfeeding in babies

Breastfeeding is not an impediment to practicing activities underwaterif the mother's physical condition and time allow it. You will only have to adapt your activity to the feeding times, to avoid malnutrition of the infant and very annoying breast tension during immersion.

Pressure changes do not appear to alter milk production and microbubbles, which could theoretically be produced in the maternal circulation and in the mother's tissues, would not alter milk production. It has not been demonstrated that microbubbles form in milk secretion, and in the hypothetical case that this were the case, this would have no impact on the infant.

Great care must be taken when cleaning the nipple after immersion, since during immersion it can be contaminated with bacteria that could cause gastrointestinal disorders in the infant. This contamination, if there are cracks in the breasts, can cause mastitis.

Menstruation and diving

Changes in the female monthly cycle do not require special advice, not even menstruation. However, previous associated signs, such as mood changes; fatigue; depressive states; pain in the sinuses and joints; decreased attention, may make it advisable to perform less difficult dives (without the need for decompression).The use of tampons is fully compatible with scuba diving.

Breast implants

Breast implants, like other implants (buttocks, lips, hips, etc.), are today made exclusively of silicone (siloxane polymer) and saline solutions. Silicone It is an inert and elastic material that is barely compressible and very stable to changes in temperature and pressure.

Its density, higher than that of water, varies between 1.1 and 1.8 g/cm3 with an average of 1.35 g/cm3, which provides it with negative buoyancy. Buoyancy in the case of using prostheses made of saline solutions is not altered, since they have the same density as water.

For all these reasons, people who have prostheses in any part of the body should consult the surgeon who implanted them before diving and take into account the changes in buoyancy that may occur depending on the volume, underwaterif the mother's physical condition and time allow it. You will only have to adapt your activity to the feeding times, to avoid malnutrition of the infant and very annoying breast tension during immersion.

Pressure changes do not appear to alter milk production and microbubbles, which could theoretically be produced in the maternal circulation and in the mother's tissues, would not alter milk production. It has not been demonstrated that microbubbles form in milk secretion, and in the hypothetical case that this were the case, this would have no impact on the infant.

Great care must be taken when cleaning the nipple after immersion, since during immersion it can be contaminated with bacteria that could cause gastrointestinal disorders in the infant. This contamination, if there are cracks in the breasts, can cause mastitis.