Dry mouth Gum chewing

[ronski101]

Don't know if this is the correct place for this question but I was wondering if anyone chews gum to help alleviate dry mouth when diving? Does it work? Are there safety issues? Metal regulators are supposed to help but don't seem to work much better than plastic ones. I always drink water just before a dive to reduce cramping risk but towards the end of most dives my throat is pretty dry. I am considering taking a small squeeze bottle with me and just taking a swig as needed but gum may help too. Any experience out there or just conjecture?

 

[spacemanspiff1974]

Apollo bio-filter
Sherwood Oasis
Camel back (used by cyclists)
squeeze bottle

Not so sure about the gum. It might be difficult to chew given the way most regulator mouthpieces are designed. Also, what if you get it stuck in your throat 100 feet down?

 

[Nick_W]

I just tried chewing gum with my regulator in my mouth (no I'm not ashamed to admit that). I was kind of hard to do without chewing on the mouthpiece also. Plus, I had to make sure to not let the gum go into the body of the regulator or get all over the mouthpiece. Maybe I'm just not coordinated enough to pull it off.

I just use a hydration system like a Camelbak (I prefer Platypus, they're cheaper, easier to clean, and seem to last longer). I imagine you could go the squeeze bottle route also.

Or, if you're diving fresh water, you could just get one of those filter bottles, take the straw out of it (pictured below) and drink the water around you!

 

[ClayJar]

I wouldn't want to chew gum while diving. There's the difficulty in chewing, of course, and the chance you'll literally gum up the regulator. There's also the chance that you'll aspirate the gum, which might not be very good for the unimpeded flow of air out of your lungs. (The aspiration risk is the same reason they tell you not to dive with a loose crown.)

I think I'll stick with Capri Sun for any potential marathon dives, although I've rarely had a dry throat even on the 2.5-hour dives.

Remember, of course, that hydration starts well before the dives. If you're not hydrated by the day before, binge drinking right before the dive won't do much for your hydration -- it'll mostly run right through. Drinking can be quick, but actual hydration tends to be slower, or at least that's how I've been taught. (It seems to hold up well in practice, so I basically believe it.)

 

[Jimmer]

Just dive in fresh water, and give your mouth a swish once in a while. Of course I've been diving nothing but freshwater for the past 14 years, and last year I went to Cuba and dove saltwater for the first time. Let's just say you only make certain mistakes once.

 

[UncleJoes]

I dont recommend Gum, I tried it once and nearly lost a second stage. try hard candy or cough drops in addition to the above reccomendations. All should help.

 

[Surelyshirly]

From my first confined water dive I have been diving a Sherwood Oasis and never thought about the drymouth issue. I have come out of the water thirsty or something along those lines but never gave it a thought.

Last night I tried out a new regulator as I am looking for one to dive beyond recreational depths and came out of the water with absolute cotton mouth......NOW I know the difference in my regulator and others...

Try a Sherwood Oasis, I would not have believed the difference but it does exist .... shame they are not geared towards deeper dives where I am sure I will miss it even more..

 

[ronski101]

Thanks for the input. I think I will try a cough drop first and if that doesn't do it will try the small squeeze bottle.

 

[BTravlin]

I use Wurther's butterscotch hard candy and love them. Place between teeth and cheek before jumping in and it lasts the whole dive.

 

[spectrum]

When you feel dry mouth sneaking up on you start to think about a favorite food to get the saliva flowing. Then remove your regulator and swish the saliva around. When you feel refreshed replace the regulator. You will be refreshed and will have done a regulator R&R drill at the same time.

As mentioned regulators such as the Sherwood Oasis/Blizzard Maximus and others have a heat sink/condenser fin that attempts to recycle some of your moisture.

Another solution is to dive a double hose regulator. Generally the will be a small amount of moisture in the mouthpiece sump and that is enough to humidify each breath.

Pete