After a day of diving, many divers like to unwind back on shore or on the liveaboard with a glass of wine or a cold beer, right? All fine and good. There are many ways to enjoy a trip, but alcohol and diving don’t play well together. If you plan to drink, it’s important to do it responsibly and in a way that won’t affect your diving – like after your diving is done!
Why Even ‘Just One Drink’ Can Put Divers at Risk
A practical study showed that experienced divers with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of only 0.04 percent (the equivalent of two 0.35-litre beers over one hour on an empty stomach for a 80kg man) had significantly compromised ability to perform the skills necessary for diving safely. At lower BACs, situational awareness and inhibition may be lowered, leading a diver to take unsafe actions in the water. Impaired judgment and slow reaction time can compound a bad situation — a fact borne out by alcohol being involved in roughly 50 percent of traffic accidents by people of drinking age, and associated with as many as 70 percent of deaths related to water recreation. Not good!
Dehydration, Narcosis and the Sneaky Compounding Effects
Recent alcohol intake can potentially also contribute to dehydration in divers, which can be a risk factor for decompression sickness. Breathing dry air, along with immersion and cold temperatures, can exacerbate pre-existing dehydration.
Alcohol may also enhance the effects of nitrogen narcosis, which when combined with elevated BAC and dehydration, can lead to otherwise preventable accidents. If boating is part of your dive trip, there are additional risk factors to consider. According to 2017 US Coast Guard statistics, alcohol use is the fifth-highest contributing factor to boating accidents, and the number-one contributing factor to deaths in those accidents. Not only does alcohol cause accidents, but intoxication combined with operator inattention, inexperience or machinery failure also makes the accidents much more likely to be fatal. So take heed.
While a drink or two with friends might be just the thing after a day of underwater exploration, don’t forget that a relatively safe activity can quickly become much less so when mixing alcohol with diving. Save your mixing for nitrox instead! Safe diving!
For an extensive range of diving health and safety information and downloadable resources, research studies, incident summaries, and free e-Learning courses, take the time to explore the DAN website.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much alcohol does it take to impair diving ability?
Research shows that even a BAC of 0.04%, roughly two beers, can significantly reduce a diver’s ability to perform basic safety skills.
Can drinking the night before a dive still affect me?
Yes. Residual alcohol, dehydration and poor sleep can linger into the next day, increasing the risk of narcosis, bad decisions and slower reactions.
Does alcohol increase the chances of decompression sickness?
Indirectly, yes. Alcohol contributes to dehydration, which is a known risk factor for DCS, especially when combined with immersion and cold stress.
Is alcohol linked to boating or dive-boat accidents?
Very much so. US Coast Guard data shows alcohol is the top contributing factor in fatal boating accidents.
Is it safe to drink after diving?
Moderate drinking after your diving day is usually fine; just hydrate, keep it sensible and never dive again until you’re fully sober and rested.
This article was originally published in Scuba Diver Magazine
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