pregnancy & diving

[CuriousMe]

In my opinion, with my admittedly limited knowledge....it's been my understanding that the main concern with diving while pregnant is not that it would harm the mother in some way...but that it is unknown what effect pressure has on a developing fetus. So, it would seem to me that it wouldn't matter if the mother was in the absolute best possible mental and physical shape ever...physics are physics. Training doesn't get around them, experience doesn't get around them. Diving while pregnant exposes the fetus to physical forces that may or may not effect how they develop....it's not about the mother or what kind of shape she's in.

I respect your and your wife's right to make your own decision Jaws14....but I have to agree that taking such a risk with a fetus for a "pleasure" activity seems to make no sense at all.

Peace,
Cathie

 

[christine]

I agree that diving while pregnant doesn't seem like a smart or safe thing to do, but "oravake" also asked if diving could effect you trying to conceive? Anyone know?

 

[DocVikingo]

Facts such as:

"But before you get judgemental, here are some other facts:
*At the time she was a scuba instructor and I was a master instructor
*She was a Marathon runner and triathlete that had recently participated in the national trials
*Before and while she was pregnant, she was running 6 to 10 miles a day with one 15+ mile event on the weekend
*Several times a week she swam a mile of laps in the pool before work
*She was a US Marine Officer
*The baby was born just as healthy as can be, and is the smartest little lass a proud dad could wish for, and like mom, is also athletic. Her intelligence is not a figment of our imagination either, as tests, grades and acceleration recommendations by her teachers verify.
*The next three deliveries have led to the same results
*All of the deliveries went smoothly and naturally without any problems, pain relief, etc."

.. have little relevance to the issue at hand, i.e., the safety of diving while pregnant, especially as regards the foetus. Jaws14's position indeed is not logically argued.

Best regards.

DocVikingo

 

[DocVikingo]

While there is some evidence that deep saturation diving in males adversely affects the functional competence of spermatozoa, similar research has not yet been performed on recreational divers.

To the best of my knowledge the effects of scuba on female fertility has not been studied at all. However, there is no apparent reason that it should be adversely impacted.

Best regards.

DocVikingo

 

[Jaws14]

To SubMariner, CuriousMe and DocVikingo,

When I told my wife you folks recommended that absolutely no risk should be taken to compromise a fetus, and that perhaps I should have put her in a padded cell during pregnancy to ensure such, she just smiled and suggested that maybe I was misusing my valuable time on this discussion board. I hope not. I wanted to share my story and hope that you understand other divers can have a different opinion than your own, and have the right to do so.

DocVikingo, you seem to presume some level of expertise in your comments, but could you place some of your qualifications in your profile to give some of what you say some level of credibility.

CuriousMe a.k.a. Cathy, I liked your 'peace' closing. Peace to you as well, even if we never agree on this, or any other, issue.

Sincerely, Guy

 

[Damselfish]

I don't think I heard anyone say anything about absolutely no risks or padded cells. Life is full of risks. But we're talking specifically about diving, which is far from a requirement in life. Yeah, I know some would argue with that

No one said you weren't entitled to your own opinion either. It just appears that everyone is disagreeing with you. Not that the majority is always correct, but when you're outnumbered so many to one it might be worth at least considering the other opinions. And I would consider some of the comments facts rather than opinions - such as when DocVikingo points out that many of your facts, however true, aren't relevant.

 

[DocVikingo]

I am doctor with 30 years of experience in scuba and in medicine, and a strong interest in dive medicine. I also am a longstanding Medical Regulator for the board's Diving Medicine forum, and write the occasional diving medicine piece for "Undercurrent" and DAN's "Alert Diver" magazines, e.g.,

"Depression & Diving--Making the Call"
http://scuba-doc.com/alertdiver2.html

Cnadarian envenomations & Safesea
http://scuba-doc.com/safesea.html

"The Minds and Bodies of Children--Are They Really Suited to Scuba?" http://www.undercurrent.org/UCnow/articles/Kids200109.shtml

"Diarrhea and Divers," Undercurrent, April 2002

BTW, perhaps I'm misssing it but I see no attempt in this thread to abridge your right to an opinion. However, those posters who find your perspective to be less than fully-informed and tightly-reasoned of course have the right to take issue.

Hope that you found this responsive.

Best regards.

DocVikingo