What happens anatomically when we dive deep ?
Water When diving, it is not the presence of oxygen or nitrogen that directly causes an increase in breathing rate. Rather, it is the increase in partial pressure of the gases that influences our respiratory response. During a dive, as the diver descends deeper, the pressure exerted by the water increases. This means that the partial pressure of the gases in the breathing mixture (which typically consists of both oxygen and nitrogen) also increases. The composition of the gas mixture remains relatively constant throughout the dive, with oxygen making up around 21% and nitrogen around 79% of the air we breathe at the surface. As the partial pressure of oxygen increases with depth, it can lead to a condition known as hyperoxia, which can have adverse effects on the body. To prevent these effects, such as oxygen toxicity, the use of special gas mixtures with reduced oxygen content is employed in technical diving. However, for recreational diving within standard depth limits an...