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Chapter 8 — 4
convenience, most women today prefer to wear internal protection such as tampons rather then
menstrual pads. In the early days, there was some concern that menstrual blood-loss may act as
an attractant to
sharks. In fact, females have a much lower incidence of shark attacks than
males. This may be related to their
different diving behaviour, or that haemolysed blood is a
shark repellant.
Menstrual pads and protection
There is little reason to avoid diving during the menstrual period. If the
woman develops significant psychological problems at this time, then of
course this must be considered on its merits, but this is not common.
The main difficulty with menstruation during diving or swimming is the
physical and social complication of a bloody discharge, and the attempts
to limit its
distribution and appearance.
Menstrual pads can cause problems. A pad, especially some of the older
styles, can leak, disintegrate and move (more so in a dry suit). They are
also too obvious in a Bikini style bathing costume. Infinity pads may be
acceptable in a dry suit.
Tampons are effective and cause few or no problems. The Diva cup,
Mooncup or the disposable Instead cup are effective and convenient.
Hormonal changes before and during menstruation tend to cause fluid retention and swelling.
There is a theoretical possibility that this might encourage the development of DCS, and one
study of altitude DCS suggested that DCS was more likely earlier in the menstrual cycle. This
has not been validated for divers. There is minimal experimental data to support this
association, but it may be wise for women, at least during this time, to add a safety margin to
their decompression requirements.
Some women have significant psychological and physical problems around the time of
menstruation, with abdominal pain, muscle cramps, headaches, nausea and vomiting. These
may impair their diving ability. Women who suffer from severe problems of this nature, are
advised to avoid diving at this time. The psychological disturbances associated with pre-
menstrual tension and anxiety, may sometimes warrant the avoidance of diving during this
time.
Some female migraine sufferers, have an increased likelihood of migraines around the time of
menstruation. The problems associated with migraine are discussed further in Chapter 32 and
the recommendations there should be followed.
Repeated exposure to high pressure environments seems to have no significant effect on
hormone regulation, ovulation or menstruation.