Is It Safe for My Grandchildren to Swim Underwater and Practice Breath Holding?
Is It Safe for My Grandchildren to Swim Underwater and Practice Breath Holding?Maybe you’ve seen the signs at some swimming pools, “No Prolonged Underwater Swimming Or Breath Holding.” Yet practicing holding the breath has been a common swimming pool game for years, and breath holding was part of the training regime for competitive swimmers even before there were swimming pools. You may be wondering if you really need to prohibit underwater swimming and breath holding when you take your grandchildren swimming.Answer: Prolonged swimming underwater and breath holding is a dangerous practice that can lead to drowning. Some aquatic facilities have posted signs prohibiting these activities. Do not allow your grandchildren to engage in these practices, even if there are no signs posted. In order to understand why breath holding poses a threat, it is necessary to know something about human respiration. A high level of carbon dioxide in the blood is what actually triggers air hunger. Many time
