Recreational Diving Practice for Stress Management: An Exploratory Trial

This study investigated the sources of physiological stress in diving by comparing SCUBA dives (stressors: hydrostatic pressure, cold, and hyperoxia), apneic dives (hydrostatic pressure, cold, physical activity, hypoxia), and dry static apnea (hypoxia only). We hypothesized that despite the hypoxia induces by a long static apnea, it would be less stressful than SCUBA dive or apneic dives since the latter combined high pressure, physical activity, and cold exposure. Blood samples were collected from 12 SCUBA and 12 apnea divers before and after dives. On a different occasion, samples were collected from the apneic group before and after a maximal static dry apnea. We measured changes in levels of the stress hormones cortisol and copeptin in each situation. To identify localized effects of the stress, we measured levels of the cardiac injury markers troponin ( cTnI ) and brain natriuretic peptide ( BNP ), the muscular stress markers myoglobin and lactate), and the hypoxemia marker ischemia‐modified albumin ( IMA ). Copeptin, cortisol, and IMA levels increased for the apneic dive and the static dry apnea, whereas they decreased for the SCUBA dive. Troponin, BNP , and myoglobin levels increased for the apneic dive, but were unchanged for the SCUBA dive and the static dry apnea. We conclude that hypoxia induced by apnea is the dominant trigger for the release of stress hormones and cardiac injury markers, whereas cold or and hyperbaric exposures play a minor role. These results indicate that subjects should be screened carefully for pre‐existing cardiac diseases before undertaking significant apneic maneuvers.

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“…On the other hand, improved well‐being and reduced stress have been reported recently in recreational SCUBA divers (Beneton et al. ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 74%

Physiological stress markers during breath‐hold diving and SCUBA diving

et al. 2019

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“…To date, the majority of studies have focused on the adverse health effects of scuba diving, such as decompression illnesses such as barotraumas and circulation problems, which are related to accidents or malfunctioning of the equipment [ 24 , 25 , 26 ]. Only a few studies with a very limited number of participants ( N between 15 and 27) have suggested salutogenic effects, described as a state of wellbeing immediately after diving [ 27 ]. For instance, a study carried out on veteran soldiers undertaking diving programs with Deptherapy UK reported an overall improvement in psychosocial wellbeing scores after scuba diving therapy ( N = 15), including decreased levels of anxiety, insomnia, and depression.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Beneficial Effects of Short-Term Exposure to Scuba Diving on Human Mental Health

Carreño

Gascón

Vert

et al. 2020

IJERPH

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Exposure to outdoor blue spaces can help improve human health by reducing stress, promoting social relationships, and physical activity. While most studies have focused on the adverse health effects of scuba diving, very few have assessed its health benefits. Moreover, when scuba diving is done in large groups with no diving instructor or pre-dive briefing, negative environmental impacts are generated and negative impacts on human health may also occur due to overcrowding, which may create stress. This is the first study to evaluate the effects of scuba diving on divers’ mental health using their diving practices to estimate the impacts on the ecosystem. In the marine-protected area of Cap de Creus and adjacent areas, we assessed the mental health of 176 divers and 70 beach users (control group) by employing a 29-item version of Profile of Mood State (POMS) questionnaires. According to the parameters associated with reduced environmental impacts, two scuba diving experiences were established. Poisson regression models were performed to assess both the contribution of the activity and diving experiences to POMS scores. Both groups (scuba divers and beach goers) reduced their POMS scores after carrying out the activities. Although no significant differences were found between beach and scuba diving activities, nor between the two different scuba diving experiences, our results showed that subjects with regular medication intake due to a chronic or psychiatric illness had a POMS reduction score significantly higher than other subjects. We conclude that both beach and scuba diving activities have positive effects for human mental health, particularly among subjects with regular medication intake.

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“…Scuba dives induce increased levels of stress hormones ( Anegg et al, 2002 ) and cortisol according to immersion depth ( Zarezadeh and Azarbayjani, 2014 ). Such dives are associated with transient endothelial dysfunction, which is likely mediated by hyperbaric O 2 , and have been linked to reduced cognitive performance ( Pourhashemi et al, 2016 ) and stress cardiomyopathy ( Beneton et al, 2017 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Human Physiological Responses to a Single Deep Helium-Oxygen Diving

Bao¹,

Shen

Fang³

et al. 2021

Front. Physiol.

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Objective: The objective of this study was to explore whether a single deep helium-oxygen (heliox) dive affects physiological function.Methods: A total of 40 male divers performed an open-water heliox dive to 80 m of seawater (msw). The total diving time was 280 min, and the breathing helium-oxygen time was 20 min. Before and after the dive, blood and saliva samples were collected, and blood cell counts, cardiac damage, oxidative stress, vascular endothelial activation, and hormonal biomarkers were assayed.Results: An 80 msw heliox dive induced a significant increase in the percentage of granulocytes (GR %), whereas the percentage of lymphocytes (LYM %), percentage of intermediate cells (MID %), red blood cell number (RBC), hematocrit (hCT), and platelets (PLT) decreased. During the dive, concentrations of creatine kinase (CK), a myocardial-specific isoenzyme of creatine kinase (CK-MB) in serum and amylase alpha 1 (AMY1), and testosterone levels in saliva increased, in contrast, IgA levels in saliva decreased. Diving caused a significant increase in serum glutathione (GSH) levels and reduced vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1) levels but had no effect on malondialdehyde (MDA) and endothelin-1 (ET-1) levels.Conclusion: A single 80 msw heliox dive activates the endothelium, causes skeletal-muscle damage, and induces oxidative stress and physiological stress responses, as reflected in changes in biomarker concentrations.

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Recreational Diving Practice for Stress Management: An Exploratory Trial

Cited by 20 publications

References 33 publications

Physiological stress markers during breath‐hold diving and SCUBA diving

Physiological stress markers during breath‐hold diving and SCUBA diving

The Beneficial Effects of Short-Term Exposure to Scuba Diving on Human Mental Health

Human Physiological Responses to a Single Deep Helium-Oxygen Diving

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