Many divers wonder if they can dive if they have diabetes. Either they are new to diving and have the condition or they are an experienced diver who has developed the condition. Either way, no diver wants to give up a sport that they love and many wonder if diabetes is really a disease that requires a diver to give up diving. Well, this is a debate that has been ongoing ever since recreational diving became a sport and it is only now that there are guidelines that have been put in place to ensure that divers with diabetes can dive in safety instead of secrecy.
Yes, it's true. Divers all over the world have been diving for years by keeping their diabetes a secret. This is a dangerous thing to do, but they have managed and they have also paved the way for the major diving organizations to set up a series of stringent guidelines that allow divers with diabetes that is well managed and who are otherwise fit and healthy to take the plunge and keep doing what they love. This is good news for divers all over the world and divers of all ages.
So what are these guidelines? Well, the Divers Alert Network (DAN) came up with a set of guidelines for divers with diabetes. In a nutshell, these guidelines state that divers with diabetes need to be fit to dive, need to choose their dives wisely, and they need to manage their diabetes on the day that they dive. That doesn't sound so bad, does it? Well, it's not really, but these are a little more detailed than this snapshot, so let's take a closer look.
Being fit to dive means that divers with diabetes must have a level of fitness that is comparable with those divers who do not have diabetes. After all, diving has no effect on blood sugar levels and the utilization of glucose in the body. The issue comes with insulin management and this must be carefully monitored to ensure that a diver will not end up with low blood sugar while diving. If a diver experiences seizures, impaired judgement, or a lack of coordination when they have low blood sugar, then they should not dive. Divers also should not dive if they are not able to tell when low blood sugar is coming on or if they know that exercise adversely affects their blood sugar levels.
Fitness to dive includes health and unfortunately diabetes can bring on a number of other conditions that can make diving dangerous and can increase the risk of decompression sickness. Conditions that can be brought on by diabetes include asthma, nerve damage, kidney disease, eye disease, or heart disease. If any of these are present it means that diving must be avoided.
Now let's talk about choosing your dive wisely. While not all diving conditions have been assessed in terms of how they affect divers with diabetes, there are a few guidelines that should be followed. First, keep your dives fairly shallow, no deeper that 30 m (100 feet) and avoid decompression dives. If you need to surface to be treated for low blood sugar the last thing you will need is to delay treatment because you have to make decompression stops as you ascend. Avoid dives that are cold, long, and difficult and avoid dives that involve overhead environments, such as wrecks or cave diving. The faster and easier you can get to the surface the better.
Finally, we need to talk about management of blood sugar levels on the day of the dive. DAN recommends that divers with diabetes check their blood sugar levels 60, 30, and 10 minutes before a dive and immediately after a dive. This will allow divers with diabetes to track their blood sugar closely and ensure that their levels stay in the safe zone of 150 mg.dL (8.3 mmol.L) as a minimum. Divers should also avoid diving if their blood sugar levels get higher than 300 mg.dL (16.7 mmol.L). Divers with diabetes should also check their blood sugar levels fairly often for 12 to 15 hours after a dive. Does this mean that divers with diabetes cannot do multiple dives per day? No, not at all. They simply must follow this monitoring protocol for each dive and as long as their blood sugar levels remain stable they are good to go.
Divers with diabetes should take a few other precautions as well before diving. They should ensure that they have the proper medication to deal with low blood sugar. One of the most popular brands among diabetic divers is Insta-Glucose because of its sturdy packaging. Diabetic divers also need to be sure to educate their buddy on the signal for low blood sugar, which is an 'L' made with the thumb and forefinger. If you have a dip in blood sugar while diving, signal your buddy and the dive leader, inflate your BC, take your glucose, and then exit the water. Your buddy should be with you and it is wise to have a buddy who does not also have diabetes.
Self-care and being mindful of what is happening with your body will allow you to keep diving even though you are diabetic. Divers with diabetes are now able to dive freely in most circumstances as long as they monitor their condition, eat a proper diet, avoid drinking too much alcohol, and have good health and fitness otherwise. So if you have diabetes, don't despair. Consult with your doctor to make sure you are healthy enough to dive and then go ahead and enjoy the sport you love.