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Diving reflex in a human baby. The diving reflex, also known as the diving response and mammalian diving reflex, is a set of physiological responses to immersion that overrides the basic homeostatic reflexes, and is found in all air-breathing vertebrates studied to date.
The diving reflex is a set of physiological responses that occur in response to cold water immersion, particularly when the face or body is exposed to cold water. It is an evolutionary adaptation that helps mammals, including humans, manage the challenges of being submerged in cold water.
Most human babies demonstrate an innate swimming or diving reflex from birth until the age of approximately six months, which are part of a wider range of primitive reflexes found in infants and babies, but not children, adolescents and adults. Other mammals also demonstrate this phenomenon (see mammalian diving reflex).
It is exhibited strongly in aquatic mammals (seals, [17] otters, dolphins, muskrats), [18] but exists in other mammals, including humans. Diving birds, such as penguins, have a similar diving reflex. [6] The diving reflex is triggered specifically by chilling the face and breath-hold.
A list of reflexes in humans. Abdominal reflex; Accommodation reflex — coordinated changes in the vergence, lens shape and pupil size when looking at a distant object after a near object. Acoustic reflex or attenuation reflex — contraction of the stapedius and tensor tympani muscles in the middle ear in response to high sound intensities.
Other mammals also demonstrate this phenomenon (see mammalian diving reflex). The diving response involves apnea, reflex bradycardia, and peripheral vasoconstriction; in other words, babies immersed in water spontaneously hold their breath, slow their heart rate, and reduce blood circulation to the extremities (fingers and toes). [9]
The human body has several oxygen-conserving adaptations that manifest under diving conditions as part of the mammalian diving reflex. The adaptations include: Reflex bradycardia: Significant drop in heart rate. Blood-shift: Blood flow and volume is redistributed towards vital organs by means of a reflex vasoconstriction. Blood vessels distend ...
An alert diving partner or nearby lifeguard would be in the best position to rescue such a person. Static apnea blackout occurs at the surface when a motionless diver holds their breath long enough for the circulating oxygen in blood to fall below that required for the brain to maintain consciousness.