Change in temperature can cause you to faint in the water. Be careful.

Immersion syndrome is caused by thermal shock, rather than being a digestive disorder, as people once believed.

Vagal inhibition due to submersion (immersion syndrome) is quite frequent in summer, since we subject our bodies to sudden temperature changes when the weather is hot and plunge into the cool water of the sea or a swimming pool.

If your body is digesting food, this can further complicate things. After eating, the body’s blood flow is redistributed and is concentrated in the digestive tract. If a person who is in the process of digesting a meal dives into the water, the change in body temperature causes the blood to leave the digestive tract and move to other parts of the body, such as the skin, to offset the change. What’s more, when the blood encounters the cold, the blood vessels narrow, which reduced the blood supply to the brain and can cause fainting or loss of consciousness. If you are in the water, there is even a risk of drowning.

Although some people take exaggerated precautions to protect themselves from this syndrome, the truth is that it can cause injury. How long you should wait after eating depends on what you have eaten.

 Aspects to keep in mind before taking to the water

• Take a shower or wet parts of your body prior getting into the water, this will minimise the difference between the air temperature and the sea or the pool.
• Avoid intense physical exercises just before jumping into the water, since this may increase the temperature difference and, therefore, the risk of a stomach cramp.
• Don’t drink very cold liquids quickly after having sport.
• Get out of the water if you feel shivery, nausea, changes in vision or ringing in the ears and requested medical assistance, if necessary.
• Don’t eat heavy, greasy, sugary food, or drink alcohol, because it is digested more slowly and can cause stomach cramp.
• If you have had something light to eat, there is no need to stay out of the water for two hours, but don’t play tennis or football in the sun, because the effect can be the same.

What to do in case of stomach cramp?

The symptoms of immersion syndrome are often intense shivering, nausea and vomiting, stomach cramps, ringing in the ears, difficulty of vision and loss of consciousness.

If you have these symptoms you should:

1. Get out of the water or ask for help
2. Drink fluids if you have vomited
3. Rest away in the shade
4. Place cool cloths on your forehead
5. Lie face up and raise your legs
6. Do not eat solids for the next 12 hours.
7. Try to stay conscious while emergency services arrive.

Special care must be taken with the children, who find it difficult to wait before swimming, and with the elderly, who have a lower heart rate and who may faint without warning.

Take these precautions after eating and exercising this summer and enjoy the beach and the water in safety.

This post is also available in: Spanish