Peeing can kill you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[highdesert]

OK, this is a new one for me; maybe it's been on the 'Board but I haven't seen it.

Logged onto the 'net today, and one of the articles posted on the MSN Homepage was something about " 50 ways men can beat the reaper", or like that. Here's a link:
50 Ways to Beat the Reaper - Page 1 - MSN Health & Fitness - Health Topics

So I'm perusing the article, figuring I like the idea of being around to dive a good long time, and item #21 tells me not to pee in the ocean, since bodily fluids attract sharks. Now we've all read countless threads concerning the pleasures and even possible benefits of peeing in your wetsuit, but this one is new to me. Does this mean that every time I pee during a dive and live to tell about it, I've cheated death?? And since this point was made in a "Men's Health" article, does it mean that it's OK for women to pee in the vicinity of a shark?

 

[skynscuba]

It's only going to kill you if you pee in drysuit undies which I've loaned to you.

 

[DennisS]

If you think it's bad in peeing in the ocean, don't even think about peeing in the Amazon.

The Dreaded Candiru AKA Penis Fish: Myth or a Horrible Fact? - Associated Content

 

[Garrobo]

Hmmmmm. 72 dives, averaging something like at least 4 pees a dive. I guess I've beaten death at least 288 times while diving.

 

[Peter_C]

item #21 tells me not to pee in the ocean, since bodily fluids attract sharks.

Sharks learn to seek out and smell their prey in many ways. One of the most common is urine from their favorite food...mammals known as pinnipeds aka seals and sea lions. So the more you mimmick them the more likely you are to attract them. Act like prey and they may mistake you for prey. Fortunately they do not usually feed under the water, but instead attack at the surface. So those that like to Ab dive are at a much higher risk. Surfers are at an even higher risk especially since they tend to surf in very poor visibility areas.

So with that said, I have a pee valve and use it...A LOT! We do our best to limit our surface swims. We will kayak dive or just drop in and swim underwater. At least if we get hit by a GW on our kayaks they will pretty much just blow us out of the water and knock us over. Then hopefully after getting a taste of plastic move on.

Anything electronic can also attract a sharks attention. Like say a scooter...or even a wrist computer. Camera strobes produce a huge amount of RFI also. Yup we use all of the good stuff in the land lords territory, and I worry more about the current of the ocean.

Remember we are not their food and when they do attack us it is a mistake. That is why they bite and leave, but unfortunately usually leaving the victim with severe but not typically life threatening injuries. Our little bit of fat takes a shark more energy to process then it is worth.

 

[ScubaJW]

Sharks learn to seek out and smell their prey in many ways. One of the most common is urine from their favorite food...mammals known as pinnipeds aka seals and sea lions. So the more you mimmick them the more likely you are to attract them. Act like prey and they may mistake you for prey. Fortunately they do not usually feed under the water, but instead attack at the surface. So those that like to Ab dive are at a much higher risk. Surfers are at an even higher risk especially since they tend to surf in very poor visibility areas.

So with that said, I have a pee valve and use it...A LOT! We do our best to limit our surface swims. We will kayak dive or just drop in and swim underwater. At least if we get hit by a GW on our kayaks they will pretty much just blow us out of the water and knock us over. Then hopefully after getting a taste of plastic move on.

Anything electronic can also attract a sharks attention. Like say a scooter...or even a wrist computer. Camera strobes produce a huge amount of RFI also. Yup we use all of the good stuff in the land lords territory, and I worry more about the current of the ocean.

Remember we are not their food and when they do attack us it is a mistake. That is why they bite and leave, but unfortunately usually leaving the victim with severe but not typically life threatening injuries. Our little bit of fat takes a shark more energy to process then it is worth.

This got my attention. Where did you get this info from, especially words above in bold? I would like to read the original documents. Thanks.

 

[Peter_C]

Common knowledge, watch the Discovery channel for shark week.

"Attack strategy consists of a swift, surprise attack from below, inflicting a large, potentially fatal bite." Shark Images from Douglas J. Long, UCMP

"I spent five years in South Africa and observed over 1,000 predatory attacks on sea lions by great whites," said Martin. "The sharks would rocket to the surface and pulverize their prey with incredible force." Great White Shark Attacks: Defanging the Myths

"The hunting technique of the white shark varies with the species it hunts. When hunting Cape fur seals off Seal Island, South Africa; the shark will ambush it from below at high speeds and hit the seal at mid-body. They go so fast that they actually breach out of the water. They have also been observed chasing their prey after a missed attack. The prey is usually attacked at the surface.[14]

When hunting Northern elephant seals off California, the shark immobilizes the prey with a large bite to the hindquarters (which is the main source of the seal's mobility) and waits for the seal to bleed to death. This technique is especially used on adults which are large and dangerous. Prey is normally attacked sub-surface. Harbour seals are simply grabbed from the surface and pulled down until they stop struggling. They are then eaten near the bottom. California sea lions are ambushed from below and struck in mid-body before being dragged and eaten" Great white shark - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I must say, I did not know they attacked Elephant seals mid water column. Still they have only ever attacked a couple of scuba divers and that is nothing compared to the number of people that drown due to their own mistakes.

 

[amascuba]

So that's what you have to do to get the sharks to come near you during the dive.... I guess I'll start peeing more often...

 

[Eris Lucan7*]

So sad ?!

7*

 

[ClayJar]

As far as I've heard the only way wetsuit divers and pee can be lethal is if asparagus is involved. Apparently, put those three things together in combination and it has a very high probability of severe trauma.

Strangely enough, not a single death among solo divers has been attributed to the wetsuit-pee-asparagus complex. While they certainly suffer certain adverse effects, those consequences seem always to fall short of mortal injuries.