Is it really enough to wait a few hours after meals before taking a bath to avoid this disorder or is not everything we know about it correct? Let’s find out together.
We are used to hearing about congestion especially as summer approaches, beach holidays and the countless opportunities for a bath that gives relief from the heat. Traditionally, in fact, we talk about this malaise in reference to a blockage of digestion that could occur by immersing yourself in cold water just as the gastrointestinal system is engaged in digestive processes, with consequences that could also be lethal. Hence the classic rule that more or less all of us have learned to know since childhood: no diving into the sea for at least 2-3 hours after eating.
But is it really so? Is there really a risk related to immersion in water immediately after a meal?
We immediately anticipate that for some years many doctors have been trying to emphasize that there is no scientific evidence of the existence of an actual danger of digestive congestion in water: even the FNOMCeO (the National Federation of the Orders of Surgeons and Dentists) has tried to clarify the issue through its portal “Doctor but is it true that?”, Born precisely with the aim of stemming phenomena of disinformation or partial information in the field of health. So let’s try to deepen the topic.
How congestion is described
Intestinal congestion, digestive congestion or simply congestion: three ways to indicate the same problem, that is, as anticipated, a blockage of digestive activity as a result of a change in temperature to which you are exposed during or immediately after a meal.
Generally this change occurs by immersing yourself in cold water for a bath, but also by consuming a cold drink (or a drink in general) or, again, finding yourself, on a full stomach, in a particularly cold environment without adequate protection (in summer, for example, in an environment with a strong emission of air conditioning or, in winter, going outdoors, perhaps, for those who have the habit of smoking, with the excuse of a cigarette break between one course and another, without being sufficiently covered).
Congestion is generally explained by the fact that when eating, there would be, thanks to a vasodilation mechanism in the intestine, a strong blood flow to the organ engaged in digestion. If, however, in this phase you immerse yourself in cold water, due to the resulting temperature change, there would then be an outflow of circulation, recalled by the brain to restore basal temperature, with consequent blocking of digestive activity.
Other times, however, it is emphasized that the immersion in cold water to digestion in progress would cause an excessive flow of blood to the abdomen that would end up slowing down or blocking the digestive processes.
What are the symptoms?
In any case, the result would be digestive congestion, characterized by a series of symptoms:
- pallor
- chills on the skin
- cold sweats
- abdominal pain
- Cramps
- nausea
- headache
- retching
- exhaustion
- Dizziness
- pressure drop
- loss of consciousness.
In the most serious cases we get to talk about a real heart failure.
These are disorders that can create difficulties of various kinds out of the water but which, as is often pointed out, could be really dangerous if they occur while you are at sea or even in the pool, associated with a possible risk of drowning.
What to do in case of congestion?
Generally, if there is a possibility, at the first sign of malaise, the recommended treatment is to lie down with feet and legs raised above the head, keeping the belly warm.
If the person who feels sick is in the water, he must be helped to get out (possibly also by calling for help), dried and heated, and then laid out with his legs raised.
As soon as the body temperature has recovered, it may be useful to take lukewarm liquids in small sips. Generally everything is resolved within 2-3 hours.
Only in the most serious cases, for example if the subject has lost consciousness, it is advisable to go to the emergency room.
Does the risk in the water exist?
If we search for this question on the aforementioned information portal wanted by the National Federation of the Orders of Surgeons and Dentists, we discover that the answer is negative: there is no scientific evidence that immersing yourself in water immediately after eating is dangerous.
Not only that, there is a statement by the pediatrician Lucio Piermarini who, through UPPA.it – Un pediatrician per amico (information resource created by specialists and dedicated to pregnant women and new mothers), explains how the very existence of congestion does not find real evidence: «If we go to look in scientific journals, from trivial conformist doctors, we do not even find the equivalent of the term “congestion”. In short, an all-Italian thing, a bit like the “cervical”» reveals the doctor.
Even the International Life Saving Federation (the world organization for water safety) has published an official document in which it states that there is no evidence that eating before swimming increases, compared to the general population, the risk of drowning. And although nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain may be felt after meals, the causal relationship between these phenomena and the risk of drowning has not been reported or studied. Therefore, any recommendations on the amount and type of feeding that can be granted before entering the water, as well as on waiting times before a bath (traditionally, it is thought that the wait should be longer if food has been consumed that is particularly demanding to digest for the gastrointestinal tract has been consumed).
Moreover, even the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (an important public health control body of the United States of America), listing the factors that expose to the risk of drowning, make no mention of congestion.
In general, in relation to the diet before bathing in water, only alcohol consumption is a risk factor, because it interferes with reflexes, balance, coordination of movements, the ability to assess possible dangers and make decisions quickly, all valuable elements when you are in the water.
There is rather a risk of drowning, connected to cold water, in the so-called hydrocution (also known as diving syndrome or, again, rapid immersion syncope ). It is, in very simple words, a fainting that can occur when you dive very quickly in extremely cold water, because immersion is capable of triggering a particular reflex of the trigeminal nerve (the fifth of the cranial nerves, which, through its ramifications, reaches and innervates most of the face, including, for example, eyes, jaw, forehead, nose) which can also lead to cardiorespiratory arrest and / or drowning.
There are those who also in this case call into question digestive factors, or traumatic or even the release of histamine (a substance that also comes into play in allergies), but in this regard Riccardo Ristori, emergency and emergency doctor and scientific director of Salvamento Academy (company that deals with the study and dissemination of first aid), Just trying to dispel the myths about congestion and the risks of drowning, he reiterated how, according to existing studies, it is exclusively a thermal shock, so much so that, as EGLHe explained: “Today the term hydrocution has been changed to cold shock.”
Ristori also explains that, for this condition to occur, not only must the water temperature be very cold, below 10 degrees (more easily below 5 degrees), but it is also necessary that the immersion takes place with the face. To protect yourself from this specific danger it is therefore important to avoid immersing yourself in too cold waters and, in general, always have a gradual approach to water (for example, first wetting your hands and with them your arms and then your face, or, as many do who practice water sports, take a shower at room temperature before entering the water).
Rules of common sense
Green light then to iced drinks and temperature changes in the digestive phase? Common sense tells us no, especially after a particularly abundant and heavy breakfast, lunch or dinner because, even if it is not correct to speak of congestion and there is no evidence that there is a risk of drowning, you can still deal with cramps, nausea, abdominal pain and digestive difficulties of a meal “left on the stomach” that, Although they generally resolve within a few hours, they are still not pleasant.
But it can take very little to avoid similar inconveniences: it may be advisable for example to limit to a few occasions the great binges (those, to be clear, that abound in fats and proteins at the expense of fruit, vegetables and carbohydrates, and, requiring a great digestive commitment, also favor post-prandial sleep). And if you have to expose yourself to low temperatures during or immediately after meals, it may be sufficient to cover yourself properly.
Joycelyn Elders is the author and creator of EmpowerEssence, a health and wellness blog. Elders is a respected public health advocate and pediatrician dedicated to promoting general health and well-being.
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