can diabetics become commercial divers?

Question

divers...not dRivers


can diabetics be commercial divers?

Answer 1

That really depends. Some locales will not even certify a diver with diabetes unless they can show that they have not had a hypoglycemic episode in the last year or so. Rules and regulations vary from locale to locale so you need to check with the locale in which you wish to be certified. Also, some companies may not hire a diver who is a diabetic due to liability reasons. The change in pressure from diving can play havoc on some diabetics sugar though there are new products out there that are a gel that you can actually consume underwater in the event of a hypoglycemic episode.

Answer 2

It would be extremely difficult.

Some diabetics have been able to recreation dive with proper monitoring and control of their blood sugar and insulin levels, but the key to remember is that when recreation diving the dive seldom lasts for more than 40 minutes and is not supposed to go into decompression. In a no-deco dive a person can be brought to the surface in a timely manner( you can forgo the 3 min safety stop as long as a conservative dive profile is employed) and a reg could be removed at depth to ingest a gel.

However a KIrby Morgan SL37 is not so easily removed and replaced at depth and a dive profile that calls for several decompression stops to the surface cannot be changed without creating an emergency recompression on a table 5 or 6 in a chamber and a danger of a DCI or bends.

In order for anyone to become a commercial diver they must first undergo an intense medical examination administered by a Hyperbaric Physician who is certified to do commercial diver medicals, after which you must return for a medical every 1-2 yrs depending on your age and any problems they wish to monitor.

After all is said and done no one who answers you in this column can say if you are fit to dive, only the dive doc can know that answer depending on many factors and a knowledge of any drugs that can be taken and their effects on a divers physiology.

If you are still interested I say book an appointment and let the chips fall where they may.

Good Luck

Answer 3

yes they're not disabled