Quest for the Ultimate Gas

Whats the Ultimate Diving Gas ?


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"Ultimate gas" is looking at the wrong end of the problem. We need ultimate humans, not the Water World type, but humans with subtly altered physiology. For example, whales and sea lions can dive to 1/4 mile or deeper for 1/2 hour without getting bent. Why? One possibility is that their blood does not take up nitrogen well. There is enough nitrogen in a lung full of air to cause bends but does not. This is probably due to altered physiology including blood chemistry. One possibility something in the whale's internal chemistry raises the surface tension of the plasma.

Why do some people get narced at 150 fsw, but others dive to 300 feet on air without an obvious problem? If this different susceptibilty could be teased out through research, then a drug might be found to reduce narcosis.

Why do some divers get bends for no apparent reason? Nitrogen uptake and off gassing is dependent on hydration, circulation efficiency, etc. Products as simple as dark chocolate and sildenafil (viagra) have been shown to improve peripheral circulation. If GUE style arm waving helps with decompression then some drugs or supplements could also.

Many of these issues could probably be solved or mitigated for much, much less money than the subsidies that drug companies currently spend to find a remedy to an orphan disease, or any disease. Isn't bends a disease? It felt like it to me. How about a vaccine, folks. Doesn't the govt have an interest in this? Afterall, every case of bends impacts the cost of health care premiums.
 

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