Don't Drink and Dive

With the festive season fast approaching, we all find ourselves with lots of nights out and parties to attend to celebrate. Be it with friends, family or work, it is easy to find yourself over doing it with the alcoholic beverages but if we are diving during this season, how can this impact our health?

Obviously, we all know the risks of drinking too much and most of us wouldn't even consider having an alcoholic drink before we go Scuba Diving but just like driving the morning after a big night out, can alcohol still affect us while we dive?

The answer is a big resounding YES!!

It takes time for our bodies to metabolise alcohol in our systems and there are no hard and fast rules. Like diving and Nitrogen off-gasing, everyone is different and everybody's metabolic rate can vary. 

Narcosis and Alcohol

Tests have shown that a diver's ability to complete skills on Scuba is dramatically compromised with a Blood Alcohol Concentration of just 0.04% which is less than the legal limit for driving a car and, after a late night drinking, can easily be the level left in your body the next morning.

Add this impairment to that which we already feel as divers through Nitrogen Narcosis and you are asking for trouble, especially if old Murphy pops his head up....

Energy Zapping

Which leads us quite nicely onto our next problem with drinking the night before diving. Alcohol Drains Energy by impeding the liver from producing the body's primary energy source, Glucose. This can leave you feeling tired and lethargic.

If Murphy does show up on your dive, you want to have a bit of Energy in the bank to be able to deal with the unexpected. A lack of Energy can leave you incapable of dealing with it safely and expediently. 

Chilling

Feeling chilly? Have a wee dram of brandy to warm your cockles, right?

Wrong!

Alcohol actually works to dilate the blood vessels close to the skin, allowing blood to flow closer to the surface, which makes you feel warmer but with blood flowing away from the core and so close to the surface, you lose heat and chill faster.

Add this to the fact that we lose heat 25 times faster in the water anyway and those drinks are putting you at increased risk of Hypothermia

Dehydration

We have touched on Dehydration and Diving in previous articles and discussed all the risks that entails. In brief alcohol affects the kidneys, which is going to lead to a loss of body fluids and when you combine this with the dehydrating effect scuba diving inherently causes, we greatly increase the risk of DCI.

So, the take-away from this blog is not kebab and cheesy chips or to put a damper on your Christmas festivities. This is just a reminder that if you are scuba diving, take it easy the night before and after your dives.

You don't have to abstain completely but moderate your alcohol consumption and maybe switch to soft drinks after 11pm to give your body a good 8 hours, at least, to metabolise the alcohol to an acceptable level.

Above all else...Dive Safe!

Feeling Hot Hot Hot... Summer Diving in a warm climate

We are now hitting the height of the summer season here in Cyprus and the land temperatures are hitting the high 30s, low 40s (degrees centigrade) in the shade.

Even the water temperatures are getting towards the 30 degree mark, so to cool down, you need to
find a nice thermocline, which is usually around 25metres underwater.

Although these soaring temperatures and hot lazy days are fantastic for the thousands of tourists that flock to this tiny mediterranean island, there are a few things we all need to consider, especially for us Divers.


Firstly, there is the dreaded Sunburn.

As Divers, we spent an inordinate amount of time outside and in the sunshine wearing little more than a swimsuit. At the sea's shore or on the dive boat, there is usually a lovely sea breeze that keeps you cool and you can easily burn without realising it.

Even under the water, you are not safe from the sun's rays, as you can tan or burn through the water. Quite often, this happens faster than on land.

So, when you are diving in a hot climate like Cyprus, use a high factor Sunscreen to protect yourself. Apply liberally and often and even before getting in the water because nobody wants to put on a well fitting neoprene suit over the red raw burn of the Sun.


The next big issue of Hot countries is Dehydration.

In colder climes such as the UK, we are told that we should drink approximately 8 pints of water a day. That is around 4 litres. When you get to hot countries like Cyprus you will need much much more than this.

Imagine all that water you lose through perspiration. It all needs to be replaced and unfortunately, beer does not help to rehydrate. So, consider swapping out a few of those alcoholic drinks for the good old "nectar of the gods"... water

As a Scuba Diver, Hydration is extremely important from a decompression point of view. Dehydration can cause a restriction in the flow of blood to the muscles in the body and this restriction can compromise off-gassing potentially leading to bubble formation and a "bend".

There are many combined factors that can lead to dehydration for a diver in a hot country. Not drinking enough water, Drinking too much alcohol, Sweating, Breathing dry air from a compressed air cylinder and of course, the spaceman effect (the need to urinate in a weightless environment) all add up to make this a very real problem.

The final topic I will touch on is Overheating

Here in Cyprus, we have extremely hot land temperatures at this time of year. When we kit up for our dives, it can be very easy to overheat.

Our suits are designed to keep our bodies warm but on land, this can be dangerous for us. With the sun beating down, we sweat and our core temperature is elevated over and above what it should be. If our protective mechanism of sweating cannot keep up, we risk heat exhaustion and/or heat stroke.

So, why bother with the suits if the temperature is that hot you ask?

Unlike many tropical destinations, the waters around Cyprus are quite deep and although the water temperature at the surface of the sea can reach above 30 degrees, the colder waters from the deep take longer to warm up.

At the moment, the sea temperatures here are 28 degrees down to approximately 25metres and, at this point the warmed up waters from the shallows meets the colder water from the deep.

You are descending through the water, like you are in a warm bath when from the corner of your eye, you spot a slight colour change and a line of shimmering water. Suddenly, as you descend you feel the temperature drop from 28 degrees to 22 and you are extremely grateful that your instructor told you to put a wetsuit on.

This point where the cold water meets the warm water is called a thermocline and there is nothing more enjoyable than coming back up through it from cold water to warm.

So, if you are planning a dive trip to a wam country this year, remember to stay healthy, you must stay Hydrated, use a high factor sun protection and keep to the shade when kitting up, only putting on the wetsuit at the last moment when needed.

Most dive centres in hot countries will provide water for their divers to stay hydrated but, you should always have your own with you too... just in case. You can not go wrong with carrying some hydration salts also just to help along the way.

Enjoy the sunshine and enjoy the dives... I know we will