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Deep diving...

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What is the deepest you ever dived?
12 years ago, November 11th 2011 No: 21 Msg: #146779  
Does diving to 40 M have any adverse affects on ones health?

Very deep divers often seem to have serious health issues because of diving, such as the ones who dive really deep to fix things under the sea for oil rigs etc. How deep is deep enough to cause permanent health damage? Reply to this

12 years ago, November 11th 2011 No: 22 Msg: #146793  
Mel-
This is a good question and has a complicated answer.
Diving is safe when one follows all the rules but many become confident or arrogant and ignore some of the basic guidelines. More than likely the most basic of rules that is ignored is to never dive without a dive buddy. I'm afraid I know all too many divers who take the unnecessary and foolish risk of diving alone.

Let's face it if you are 60 -80 or 100 feet under water when you have an equipment malfunction you are in a mess and have no options when you don't have a dive buddy. A couple of years ago Dave's dive regulator malfunctioned and he needed to use my octopus (secondary regulator) to get to the surface safely.

The dangerous are compounded at deep depths. Plus the pressures on the body cause additional potential hazards. You may have heard divers talking about being "narc- ed out" this refers to nitrogen narcosis which is dangerous to divers as it impacts their consciousness and can be dangerous. Divers who have been afflicted by this have inadvertently swam deeper into the sea thinking they were surfacing. Some divers experience euphoria where others experience hallucinations.

Hearing loss and neurologic deficits are the most common permanent issues that divers deal with. Long term deep diving (usually commercial divers) can also experience decreased pulmonary function and liver changes.

Permanent health damage is not necessarily about depth but about situation.
i.e. divers often have trouble clearing their ears in 30 feet of water. If a diver is unable to equalize their ear the ear drum can rupture.

Another basic rule of diving is too ascend slowly so the gases in your body can decrease properly. When an emergency underwater happens it is normal to want to shoot up quickly and that is one of the last things you want to do.

Safe diving means following some basic rules.

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12 years ago, November 11th 2011 No: 23 Msg: #146794  
Thanks Merry Jo 😊

It is very lucky I didnt get involved with diving when I was younger and had no concern for my health. These days, despite my being in general good health, I always pay as much attention as is reasonably possible to health issues of travelling and travel related activitites.

22 years ago, when I started trqavelling, it would not even have occurred to me to ask if diving can harm my health. I would have just dived right in, as I did with most things. I found out since then though, that I am not unbreakable. 😊 Reply to this

12 years ago, November 11th 2011 No: 24 Msg: #146795  
Aging--- eventually we all find that we are,

not unbreakable

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12 years ago, November 12th 2011 No: 25 Msg: #146809  
Coming this Feb 60 years of age.Being once to 125 feet.That the deepest!Waste of time and air!How deep do I dive all depends on the dive site I am in!I guess diving has kept me fit and more consious about health and safety whether I am in the water or on the ground.I don't have much hobbies mainly diving and snorkeling.I love to travel !Maybe I will be diving in Nha Trang Vietnam in March 12/Keep on diving it will keep you fit and see the wonders of the world down there.It's always feels good to be down there seeing the wonders not everyone can do.I feel lucky to have seen the real life of another world down there! Only a diver can understand and experience another divers tale.So happy diving. Reply to this

12 years ago, November 12th 2011 No: 26 Msg: #146823  
B Posts: 897
Happy Diving to you too Adam 😊

Mell what you are referring to is Saturation Diving. Sat divers are now largely replaced by ROVs (Remotely Operated Vehicles) due to the fact Saturation divers have many health problems after working in the industry for extended periods of time. I have friends who are former Sat Divers and all have bone ulcers and joint problems (Dysbaric osteonecrosis) one quote that sticks in my mind is a saturation diver takes a year off his lifespan every 6 months spent at depth.

Saturation diving cannot be done by recreational divers. They need to sit in recompression chambers for often days at a time, sometimes weeks, with the chambers attached to the rig platform they work on. This is the reason for ROVs.

These problems are usually not encountered by recreational divers - professional divers are another kettle of fish.

As far as age goes..I was suprised to find the average age of dedicated recreational divers is 40 - that is divers who regularly dive or travel to destinations with the sole purpose being diving. The reason I can see for this is financial status. The oldest buddy i have had was a 79 year old gent who was fulfilling his lifelong dream to learn to dive. Given you have or should! have a dive specific medical yearly if you intend to dive a lot over the age of 45 there should be no reason to worry. Reply to this

12 years ago, November 12th 2011 No: 27 Msg: #146826  
Cindy--

Good catch- my answer was to health issues of diving. Not necessarily those at 40M. Guess I'm still a bit jet lagged and didn't read closely enough. Reply to this

12 years ago, November 12th 2011 No: 28 Msg: #146829  

In response to: Msg #146823 So far I have never encounter any health problems.I guess I am lucky.I now do 2 dives a day on each trip.My wife is 55 she dives too.She had more dives than me about 2oo dives.It's always best not take risk.Do it slowly and steadily.Do the safety stops. Reply to this

12 years ago, November 12th 2011 No: 29 Msg: #146872  
Thanks for the information, folks! 😊 Reply to this

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