Recently stopped smoking - diving implications for lung discharge?

Hi!
I stopped smoking 8 days ago and will be going on an 8 day dive
vacation this Saturday.
While not a heavy smoker, I've been doing it for 20 years. I am
experiencing coughing up the stuff I've been sucking in my lungs. This
is to be expected, but it just dawned on me that it may have impact on
my upcoming diving?
I know the dangers of diving with a cold, flying, etc, but anyone care
to comment on impact on healing (non-smoking) lungs?
I just went to the dentist today and had deep cleaning. He commented
on how improved my teeth, gums, and mouth are. He took xrays to show
improvements. (I have reduced smoking for the last 3 months in
preparation).
Maybe I keep depth to less than 30 feet?
I will be diving Jamaica...and set this up as my reward for stopping,
and validating need to stop!

Meatball wrote:

> While not a heavy smoker, I've been doing it for 20 years. I am
> experiencing coughing up the stuff I've been sucking in my lungs. This
> is to be expected, but it just dawned on me that it may have impact on
> my upcoming diving?
> I know the dangers of diving with a cold, flying, etc, but anyone care
> to comment on impact on healing (non-smoking) lungs?

Air expansion and sticky stuff in your lungs isn't a good combination, but I don't
know that it will be any worse now than when you were still smoking. If it used to be
in your alveoli and now it's clogging your bronchiole, though it may trap air and
cause all manner of unpleasant things. It would probably be agood idea to call DAN
and ask somebody whose amswer might be better informed than what you'll get here, or
else start smoking and quit again when you get home.


> Maybe I keep depth to less than 30 feet?

If trapping air in your lungs is an issue you'll need to limit your depth to about 4
feet, since an ascent of 4 feet is theoretically enough to do real damage.

--
Steve

The above can be construed as personal opinion in the absence of a reasonable
belief that it was intended as a statement of fact.

If you want a reply to reach me, remove the SPAMTRAP from the address.

Thus spake "Meatball" <chris122@comcast.net> :

>Hi!
>I stopped smoking 8 days ago and will be going on an 8 day dive
>vacation this Saturday.
>While not a heavy smoker, I've been doing it for 20 years. I am
>experiencing coughing up the stuff I've been sucking in my lungs. This
>is to be expected, but it just dawned on me that it may have impact on
>my upcoming diving?
>I know the dangers of diving with a cold, flying, etc, but anyone care
>to comment on impact on healing (non-smoking) lungs?
>I just went to the dentist today and had deep cleaning. He commented
>on how improved my teeth, gums, and mouth are. He took xrays to show
>improvements. (I have reduced smoking for the last 3 months in
>preparation).
>Maybe I keep depth to less than 30 feet?
>I will be diving Jamaica...and set this up as my reward for stopping,
>and validating need to stop!

Talk to your doctor. Maybe call DAN. We're all idiots here. I used
to be an EMT, but that doesn't even qualify me to start an IV.

--
dillon

"When the French are against it, you know we can't
be far wrong." - Adm. Bobbie Ray Inman

Hi,
I am 48 years old and I have been smoking for over 30 years and have given
up several times during this period some times for over two years and I'm
still trying to give up! I know what you mean by coughing underwater. I
have also been diving during those periods as deep as over 40m at times and
have had no problems with any strange side effects apart from using less air
(duh) and coughing and spitting flem into my regulator while giving up
smoking but it's probably a good idea to get in touch with dan and ask them
about it, if your worried.

Mind you this is just my experience you might react differently!!

regards
kaz

Download SCUBA Divelog Software
http://www.kazdivephotos.com



_____________________________
"Meatball" <chris122@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:1105664556.794091.184680@f14g2000cwb.googlegr oups.com...
> Hi!
> I stopped smoking 8 days ago and will be going on an 8 day dive
> vacation this Saturday.
> While not a heavy smoker, I've been doing it for 20 years. I am
> experiencing coughing up the stuff I've been sucking in my lungs. This
> is to be expected, but it just dawned on me that it may have impact on
> my upcoming diving?
> I know the dangers of diving with a cold, flying, etc, but anyone care
> to comment on impact on healing (non-smoking) lungs?
> I just went to the dentist today and had deep cleaning. He commented
> on how improved my teeth, gums, and mouth are. He took xrays to show
> improvements. (I have reduced smoking for the last 3 months in
> preparation).
> Maybe I keep depth to less than 30 feet?
> I will be diving Jamaica...and set this up as my reward for stopping,
> and validating need to stop!
>

Meatball wrote:

> Hi!
> I stopped smoking 8 days ago and will be going on an 8 day dive
> vacation this Saturday.
> While not a heavy smoker, I've been doing it for 20 years. I am
> experiencing coughing up the stuff I've been sucking in my lungs. This
> is to be expected, but it just dawned on me that it may have impact on
> my upcoming diving?
> I know the dangers of diving with a cold, flying, etc, but anyone care
> to comment on impact on healing (non-smoking) lungs?
> I just went to the dentist today and had deep cleaning. He commented
> on how improved my teeth, gums, and mouth are. He took xrays to show
> improvements. (I have reduced smoking for the last 3 months in
> preparation).
> Maybe I keep depth to less than 30 feet?
> I will be diving Jamaica...and set this up as my reward for stopping,
> and validating need to stop!
>

I would think the diving will just help your diving, you shouldn't have
to limit your depth. With the chemicals out of your system that you put
in there (C02), and all the hormonal, and physiological changes that
start from smoking you will probably feel better. Better blood flow,
higher percentage of O2, lungs free from smoke etc. Just think of all
the money you are saving. I quit seventeen years ago. I have never
thought about starting back up after about 30 days. I could have done
without the 80 lbs. Now I have ceased my drinking, the weight is slowly
leaving my body.


Good luck and good diving

"Meatball" <chris122@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:1105664556.794091.184680@f14g2000cwb.googlegr oups.com...
> Hi!
> I stopped smoking 8 days ago and will be going on an 8 day dive
> vacation this Saturday. anyone care to comment on impact on healing
> (non-smoking) lungs?

Steve: It would probably be agood idea to call DAN and ask somebody whose
amswer might be better informed than what you'll get here, or
else start smoking and quit again when you get home.

Dillon: We're all idiots here.

Kaz: I have been [quitting] smoking for over 30 years and have had no
problems with any strange side effects apart from using less air and
coughing and spitting flem into my regulator.

Joe: I would think the diving will just help your diving.


> The dentist commented on how improved my teeth, gums, and mouth
> are. He took xrays to show improvements.

Haaacccckkkk. Well now. Excuse me for a moment. Thank you for placing the
spitoons conveniently in the center of the dive boat.

To quote my mother. "I've been smoking for 70 years and it hasn't hurt me.
They can't prove that smoking does anything to your health." It's all hype!
The real problem is all the chemicals they use. Chemicals are bad - tobacco
is good."

So there you have it; if you believe the x-ray and haven't been around
chemicals, you can dive as deep as you want for as long as you want.

I don't think I'd elevate this post to the level of an opinion.

>From: "Meatball" chris122@comcast.net
>Date: 1/13/05 8:02 P.M. Eastern Standard Time
>Message-id: <1105664556.794091.184680@f14g2000cwb.googlegroups .com>
>
>Hi!
>I stopped smoking 8 days ago and will be going on an 8 day dive
>vacation this Saturday.
>While not a heavy smoker, I've been doing it for 20 years. I am
>experiencing coughing up the stuff I've been sucking in my lungs. This
>is to be expected, but it just dawned on me that it may have impact on
>my upcoming diving?
>I know the dangers of diving with a cold, flying, etc, but anyone care
>to comment on impact on healing (non-smoking) lungs?
>I just went to the dentist today and had deep cleaning. He commented
>on how improved my teeth, gums, and mouth are. He took xrays to show
>improvements. (I have reduced smoking for the last 3 months in
>preparation).
>Maybe I keep depth to less than 30 feet?
>I will be diving Jamaica...and set this up as my reward for stopping,
>and validating need to stop!>
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Congratulations on finally coming to your senses (as many of us have) and
stopping smoking.
You might check DAN on your question, as they seem to solicit such inquiries.

"Hartl49" <hartl49@aol.com> wrote in message
news:20050114112634.17939.00000001@mb-m22.aol.com...

> You might check DAN on your question, as they seem to solicit such
> inquiries.

Don't worry, you're not the only one giving such nonsensical advice. I'm
just picking on you because I don't know you. The rest of them are too
predictable.

What's with calling DAN over every little ridiculous query? So when someone
has a real question or a diving emergency, he's put on hold for 2 or 3 hours
while DAN's limited staff resources try to come up with witty and factual
responses to questions like "can I dive after I've quit smoking?", "I
stubbed my toe, will this predispose me to DCS?", or "can I dive after I ate
eggs for breakfast?"

Simply ridiculous.

There are a lot of smoking divers. There are a lot of non-smoking divers.
Many have crossed between the two groups, often many times. If there were
any correlation to quitting smoking and dive-related injury, or even any
correlation between eggs and dive-related injury, don't you think DAN would
have already done a proper study and written an article in Alert Diver? Or
maybe they're just too busy answering dumb questions.

I just want to be cautious.
Did not mean to incite any debate over wasting DAN's time...
I did not intend to call them with my smoking question, figured this
site would be a good place to see what others experience might have
been.
I'll post my own experience when I get back.

Greg Mossman wrote:
>
> There are a lot of smoking divers. There are a lot of non-smoking
divers.
> Many have crossed between the two groups, often many times.

Crossed it once, in 1992. NOT for health reasons, but got tired of
the social pressure and increasing number of places one CANNOT smoke.

Smoked a pack and a half a day for 30 years when I quit cold-turkey.
Never missed it a day. Never had any short-term or long-term ill
effect from those years of puffing, since the day I quit in August
1992.

I am a counterexample to the claim that cigarette smoking is additive.

YMMV.

> If there were
> any correlation to quitting smoking and dive-related injury, or even
any
> correlation between eggs and dive-related injury, don't you think DAN
would
> have already done a proper study and written an article in Alert
Diver?

No.

DAN is incapable of doing any such a study and draw conclusions that
are statistically valid.

-- Bob.