To swim or not to swim to safety in cold water - that is the question

What would you do if you fell in cold water while boating on a Canadian lake or river-would you swim to safety or stay with the boat? The answer to this question could save your life according to a study published today in the journal Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism - but the correct response may not be what you think.

For many years, aquatic safety organizations and government agencies have advised that you should not try to swim to safety during accidental cold-water immersion, even if you are wearing a personal flotation device (PFD), because attempting to swim in cold water is too risky. Recently, however, this thinking has begun to change.

In its 2006 drowning report, the Canadian Red Cross stated that if rescue is unlikely, it may be preferable to swim to safety. The report went on to show that over 60 per cent of survivors of cold water boating immersions swam for shore, as opposed to only 30 per cent who stayed with the boat.

This shift in thinking is long overdue, believe researchers Dr. Michel B. Ducharme of Defence R&D Canada and David S. Lounsbury of the University of Toronto. Based on 10 years of research and three studies of swimming in cold water, they believe that swimming for self-rescue in cold water is a viable-and sometimes necessary-option, especially on Canada's many isolated lakes and rivers.

Their advice:

1. Stay calm. Unless you're wearing an immersion suit, you'll experience cold shock when you go into cold water due to rapid cooling of the skin. You won't be able to control your breathing, and you won't get far if you try to swim at this point. Your breathing will return to normal in two to three minutes.
2. Make a plan. While you're waiting for the cold shock to subside, consider your situation and decide whether to swim or stay.
3. If you decide to swim, look for the shore and decide if you can make it. Most people who participated in the researchers' studies could swim between 800 and 1500 metres in cold water, or for 45 minutes, before the muscles in their arms and legs cooled to the point that they could no longer swim.
4. If you decide to stay, try to get out of the water as much as possible. Complete any tasks that require the use of your hands, such as tying knots or turning on flares, as soon as possible. As your hands cool, they lose dexterity.
5. Stick to your decision-don't change your mind midway. After over 30 minutes in cold water, you may become hypothermic, and you won't make the best decisions.

For more information, see the complete article "Self-rescue swimming in cold water: the latest advice," Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism, August 2007, at http://apnm.nrc.ca/swimming.

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