Safety advice when snorkelling

As with all outdoor activities, certain precautions should be taken when snorkelling in order to avoid any hazards, even if these precautions are largely a matter of common sense.

Some advice: preferably practise snorkelling with someone else, tell someone where you are going and for how long, check out the weather forecast before entering the water, plan some exit positions along the route so that you can get out of the water if needed, rest sufficiently beforehand, eat a balanced diet and consume enough carbohydrates in the morning...

The following are a few of the most frequently occurring problems:

· The cold : Because the equipment used is unsuited to the user's body shape, to the time spent doing the activity or the conditions of the water. Calorie loss is far higher in water than in the air. That's why cold can be felt in waters even warmer than 20°C. Loss of feeling in the extremities, purple lips, shivering are just some of the signs that should be taken into consideration when deciding to stop or at least take a break.

· Cramping : caused by the cold, physical exertion, dehydration, growth, an unsuitable diet for sporting activities, stress linked to practising a sport in a new environment, inappropriate equipment, ... all of these are common factors causing cramps, often in the lower limbs…

· Hypoglycaemia : Even if you do not feel as if you are making a lot of effort, any sports activity that is done without having eaten enough can lead to hypoglycaemia that is frequently manifested by the onset of tiredness.

· Immersion syncope : well known by first aiders on beaches, an immersion syncope is an accident that can have serious consequences. It is more likely to occur during digestion when a person suddenly enters water that is very much colder than the ambient temperature. Wet your body gradually and wear some form of thermal insulation to prevent this phenomenon.

· Injuries : Our body is covered with skin that is particularly thick in certain places for protective purposes, e.g. the midfoot arch and the hands. In the sea, parts of our surroundings are less visible, because they are under water or because the mask we are wearing gives us a reduced field of view. Added to this are certain restrictions, the use of tools that we are sometimes not used to using that modify our balance and restrict body movements (fins in particular), and the fact that, after a while spent in water, our skin softens and becomes more delicate. All these factors make us more prone to small wounds (cuts, sea urchin spines…) when you come into contact with the seabed, deliberately or not!

To avoid these unpleasant situations, here are some recommendations:

- Try to avoid unnecessary contact with the seabed, with the exception of entering and leaving the water

- Choose a sandy or pebbly beach for entering the water, since these beaches are made up of moving sediments, meaning that there won't be any sea urchins lurking beneath !

- When snorkelling, do not touch anything and maintain a distance of 2 to 5 m from rocks to avoid accidentally coming into contact with them.