Is breathing underwater real now? Deep breathing

23.09.2019

MOSCOW, January 27 - RIA Novosti, Olga Kolentsova. Although the fetus lives in water for nine months, and swimming is good for health, the aquatic environment is dangerous for humans. Anyone can drown - a child, an adult, a well-trained swimmer... And rescuers don’t have much time to save a person’s life and sanity.

Overcome the tension

When a person drowns, water enters his lungs. But why can’t people live at least for a short time by drawing oxygen from water? To understand this, let's figure out how a person breathes. The lungs are like a bunch of grapes, where the bronchi branch, like shoots, into many airways (bronchioles) and are crowned with berries - alveoli. The fibers in them compress and expand, allowing oxygen and other gases from the atmosphere into the blood vessels or releasing CO 2 out.

“To renew the air, it is necessary to perform a breathing movement, which involves the intercostal muscles, the diaphragm and part of the neck muscles. However, the surface tension of water is much greater than that of air. The molecules inside the substance are attracted to each other evenly due to the fact that there are neighbors on all sides. The molecules on the surface have fewer neighbors, and they attract each other more strongly. This means that in order for the tiny alveoli to draw water into themselves, an immeasurably greater effort is required from the muscle complex than when inhaling air,” says Doctor of Medical Sciences Alexey Umryukhin, head of the department. normal physiology of the First Moscow State Medical University named after I.M. Sechenov.

The adult lungs contain 700-800 million alveoli. Their total area is about 90 square meters. It is not easy to tear even two smooth glasses apart if there is a layer of water between them. Imagine how much effort you have to make when inhaling to open up such a huge area of the alveoli.

By the way, it is the force of surface tension that poses a huge problem in the development of liquid breathing. You can saturate the solution with oxygen and select its parameters so that the bonds between the molecules are weakened, but in any case, the force of surface tension will remain significant. The muscles involved in breathing will still require much more effort to push the solution into the alveoli and expel it from there. You can hold out on liquid breathing for several minutes or an hour, but sooner or later the muscles will simply get tired and will not be able to cope with the work.

It won't be possible to be reborn

The alveoli of a newborn are filled with a certain amount of amniotic fluid, that is, they are in a stuck together state. The child takes his first breath, and the alveoli open - for life. If water gets into the lungs, surface tension causes the alveoli to stick together, and it takes enormous force to pull them apart. Two, three, four breaths in water is the maximum for a person. All this is accompanied by cramps - the body works to the limit, the lungs and muscles burn, trying to squeeze everything out of itself.

There is such an episode in the popular series "Game of Thrones". A contender for the throne is consecrated king in the following way: his head is held under water until he stops floundering and shows signs of life. Then the body is pulled ashore and they wait for the person to take a breath, clear his throat and stand up. After which the applicant is recognized as a full-fledged ruler. But the creators of the series embellished the reality: after a series of inhalations and exhalations in water, the body gives up - and the brain stops sending signals that it is necessary to try to breathe.

The mind is the weak link

A person can hold their breath for three to five minutes. Then the level of oxygen in the blood decreases, the desire to take a breath becomes unbearable and completely uncontrollable. Water enters the lungs, but there is not enough oxygen in it to saturate the tissues. The brain is the first to suffer from lack of oxygen. Other cells are able to survive for some time on anaerobic, that is, oxygen-free, respiration, although they will produce 19 times less energy than in the aerobic process.

"Brain structures consume oxygen in different ways. The cortex is particularly "gluttonous" cerebral hemispheres. It is she who controls the conscious sphere of activity, that is, she is responsible for creativity, higher social functions, intelligence. Its neurons will be the first to use up their oxygen reserves and die,” the expert notes.

If a drowned man is brought back to life, his consciousness may never return to normal. Of course, a lot depends on the time spent under water, the state of the body, individual characteristics. But doctors believe that on average the brain of a drowned person dies within five minutes.

Often those who drown become disabled - they lie in a coma or are almost completely paralyzed. Although the body is formally normal, the affected brain cannot control it. This happened to 17-year-old Malik Akhmadov, who in 2010 saved a drowning girl at the cost of his health. For seven years now, the guy has been undergoing rehabilitation course after course, but his brain has not fully recovered.

Exceptions are rare, but they do happen. In 1974, a five-year-old boy in Norway stepped onto the ice of a river, fell through and drowned. He was pulled out of the water only after 40 minutes. Doctors performed artificial respiration, cardiac massage, and resuscitation was successful. The child lay unconscious for two days, and then opened his eyes. The doctors examined him and were surprised to note that his brain was absolutely normal. Maybe, ice water slowed down the metabolism in the child’s body so much that his brain seemed to be frozen and did not need oxygen, like the rest of his organs.

Doctors warn: if a person has already gone under water, the rescuer has literally a minute to save him. The faster the victim removes water from the lungs, causing vomiting reflex, the greater the chance of full recovery. It is important to remember that a drowning person rarely betrays himself by screaming or actively trying to stay afloat; he simply does not have enough strength for this. Therefore, if you suspect something is wrong, it is better to ask if everything is okay, and if there is no answer, take measures to save the drowning person.

Overcome the tension

It won't be possible to be reborn

The mind is the weak link

“Brain structures consume oxygen in different ways. The cerebral cortex is particularly “gluttonous.” It controls the conscious sphere of activity, that is, it is responsible for creativity, higher social functions, and intelligence. Its neurons will be the first to use up oxygen reserves and die,” the expert notes .

If a drowned man is brought back to life, his consciousness may never return to normal. Of course, a lot depends on the time spent under water, the state of the body, and individual characteristics. But doctors believe that on average the brain of a drowned person dies within five minutes.

Exceptions are rare, but they do happen. In 1974, a five-year-old boy in Norway stepped onto the ice of a river, fell through and drowned. He was pulled out of the water only after 40 minutes. Doctors performed artificial respiration, cardiac massage, and resuscitation was successful. The child lay unconscious for two days, and then opened his eyes. The doctors examined him and were surprised to note that his brain was absolutely normal. Perhaps the ice water slowed down the metabolism in the child’s body so much that his brain seemed to be frozen and did not need oxygen, like the rest of his organs.

Doctors warn: if a person has already gone under water, the rescuer has literally a minute to save him. The faster the victim removes water from the lungs by inducing a gag reflex, the greater the chance of full recovery. It is important to remember that a drowning person rarely betrays himself by screaming or actively trying to stay afloat; he simply does not have enough strength for this. Therefore, if you suspect something is wrong, it is better to ask if everything is okay, and if there is no answer, take measures to save the drowning person.

The first doctor to be in low-Earth orbit, Soviet pilot-cosmonaut Boris Egorov, once said: “At a depth of over 500-700 meters, a person (at least in theory) has the opportunity to become an Ichthyander without using any technology! He will swim there like a fish and live as long as possible. You just need to...fill your lungs with water. At a depth of 500-700 meters, human lungs will apparently absorb oxygen directly from the water.”

At first glance, this idea seems incredible. Don't thousands of people die every year from drowning in seawater? Can water become a substitute for ordinary oxygen? Let us mentally transport ourselves to the laboratory of the Dutch physiologist Johannes Kielstra, where the scientist conducts his amazing experiments. Here's one of them.

The scientist fills a small transparent reservoir with water and adds a little salt there. Next, he seals the container and pumps oxygen into it under pressure through a tube. The vessel is shaken and soon a white mouse is allowed inside through the intermediate (airlock) chamber. She cannot rise - a net on the surface of the water prevents this. But... Half an hour passes, an hour, two. The mouse, strange as it may seem, breathes - yes, yes, it breathes water! But the mouse does not appear to panic. The animal's lungs act like fish gills, receiving oxygen directly from the water. Of course, there can be no talk of any decompression sickness - no nitrogen was added to the water. Similar experiments were carried out by scientists in the USSR, led by candidate of medical sciences Vladlen Kozak.

So, the first step has been taken. And quite successfully. However, scientists are in no hurry to announce this. What if only small animals have the ability to breathe liquid? To dispel doubts, the method is tested on dogs. And what? In the first experiments, dogs breathed a salty solution saturated with oxygen for more than half an hour. Experiments have shown that not only dogs, but also cats can breathe liquid for a long time. Sometimes they remained under water for many hours at a time and then calmly returned to their usual way of breathing.

Is a person capable of breathing water? Encouraged by the success of experiments on animals, Johannes Kylstra made an attempt to clarify this issue. The first test subject was a diver with 20 years of experience, Frank Falezchik. When one lung was filled, he felt so good that he asked to fill the other one at the same time. “There is no need for this yet,” the scientist said. However, after some time, Kilstra decided on such an experiment.

Twenty doctors gathered in the laboratory to witness the amazing experience. The same Frank Falezhchik agreed to be the test subject. He was given anesthesia in his throat to suppress his swallowing reflex and had an elastic tube inserted into his trachea (windpipe). Through it, the scientist began to gradually pour in a special solution. Liquid entered both lungs, and everyone tensely watched Falezhchik, who showed no signs of panic. Moreover, he showed with signs that he was ready to help the experimenters, and he himself began to write down his feelings. The man breathed liquid for more than one hour! However, it took a couple of days to finally pump it out of the lungs. “I didn’t feel any discomfort,” Frank Falezczyk said after the experience, “and I didn’t feel a heaviness in my chest, as I initially expected.” Reflecting on the results of these most interesting experiments, Dr. Kylstra expressed the belief that a person with lungs filled with water can descend half a kilometer completely painlessly and return to the surface in twenty minutes.

Many years ago, Jacques-Yves Cousteau made an interesting suggestion. “The time will come,” he wrote, “and humanity will bring out new race people - “Homo aquaticus” (“underwater man”). They will populate sea bottom, they will build cities there and live as on earth.” Who knows, maybe a prophecy brave captain, a recognized elder of scuba diving, will it ever come true?

The Russian Foundation for Advanced Research began testing liquid breathing technology for submariners on dogs.

Deputy General Director of the Foundation Vitaly Davydov spoke about this. According to him, full-scale tests are already underway.

In one of his laboratories, work is underway on liquid breathing. For now, experiments are being carried out on dogs. In our presence, a red dachshund was immersed in a large flask of water, face down. It would seem, why mock an animal, it will choke now. But no. She sat under water for 15 minutes. And the record is 30 minutes. Incredible. It turns out that the dog's lungs filled with oxygenated fluid, which gave her the ability to breathe underwater. When they pulled her out, she was a little lethargic - they say it was due to hypothermia (and I think who would like to hang around under water in a jar in front of everyone), but after a few minutes she became quite herself. Soon experiments will be carried out on people, says the journalist." Russian newspaper"Igor Chernyak, who witnessed unusual tests.

It all looked like a fantasy story famous film“The Abyss”, where a person could descend to great depths in a spacesuit, the helmet of which was filled with liquid. The submariner breathed it. Now this is no longer fantasy.

Liquid breathing technology involves filling the lungs with a special liquid saturated with oxygen, which penetrates the blood. The Foundation for Advanced Research approved the implementation of a unique project, the work is being carried out by the Research Institute of Occupational Medicine. It is planned to create a special spacesuit that will be useful not only for submariners, but also for pilots and astronauts.

As Vitaly Davydov told a TASS correspondent, a special capsule was created for the dogs, which was immersed in a hydraulic chamber with high pressure. On this moment dogs can breathe for more than half an hour at a depth of up to 500 meters without health consequences. “All test dogs survived and feel well after prolonged liquid breathing,” assured the deputy head of the FPI.

Few people know that experiments on liquid breathing on humans have already been carried out in our country. They gave amazing results. Aquanauts breathed liquid at a depth of half a kilometer or more. But the people never learned about their heroes.

In the 1980s, the USSR developed and began to implement a serious program for rescuing people at depth.

Special rescue vehicles were designed and even put into operation submarines. The possibilities of human adaptation to depths of hundreds of meters were studied. Moreover, the aquanaut had to be at such a depth not in a heavy diving suit, but in a light, insulated wetsuit with scuba gear behind his back; his movements were not constrained by anything.

Since the human body consists almost entirely of water, it is not dangerous by the terrible pressure at depth in itself. The body just needs to be prepared for it by increasing the pressure in the pressure chamber to the required value. the main problem in a different. How to breathe at a pressure of tens of atmospheres? Clean air becomes poison for the body. It must be diluted in specially prepared gas mixtures, usually nitrogen-helium-oxygen.

Their recipe - the proportions of various gases - is the most big secret in all countries where similar studies are underway. But very great depth and helium mixtures do not help. The lungs must be filled with fluid to prevent them from rupturing. What is the liquid that, once in the lungs, does not lead to suffocation, but transmits oxygen to the body through the alveoli - a mystery of mysteries.

That is why all work with aquanauts in the USSR, and then in Russia, was carried out under the heading “top secret”.

Nevertheless, there is quite reliable information that in the late 1980s there was a deep-sea aquastation in the Black Sea, in which test submariners lived and worked. They went out to sea, dressed only in wetsuits, with scuba gear on their backs, and worked at depths of 300 to 500 meters. A special gas mixture was supplied under pressure into their lungs.

It was assumed that if a submarine was in distress and lay on the bottom, then a rescue submarine would be sent to it. Aquanauts will be prepared in advance for work at the appropriate depth.

The hardest thing is to be able to withstand filling your lungs with fluid and simply not die from fear

And when the rescue submarine approaches the disaster site, divers in light equipment will go out into the ocean, examine the emergency boat and help evacuate the crew using special deep-sea vehicles.

It was not possible to complete those works due to the collapse of the USSR. However, those who worked at depth were still awarded the stars of Heroes of the Soviet Union.

Probably, even more interesting research was continued in our time near St. Petersburg on the basis of one of the Navy Research Institutes.

There, too, experiments were conducted on gas mixtures for deep-sea research. But, most importantly, perhaps for the first time in the world, people there learned to breathe liquid.

In terms of their uniqueness, those works were much more complex than, say, preparing astronauts for flights to the Moon. The testers were subjected to enormous physical and psychological stress.

First, the body of the aquanauts in the air pressure chamber was adapted to a depth of several hundred meters. They then moved into a chamber filled with liquid, where the dive continued to depths said to be almost a kilometer.

The hardest thing, as those who did have the chance to communicate with the aquanauts say, was to withstand the filling of the lungs with liquid and simply not die of fear. This does not mean cowardice. Fear of choking is a natural reaction of the body. Anything could happen. Spasm of the lungs or cerebral vessels, even a heart attack.

When a person understood that the fluid in the lungs does not bring death, but gives life at great depths, completely special, truly fantastic sensations arose. But only those who experienced such a dive know about them.

Alas, the work, amazing in its significance, was stopped for a simple reason - due to lack of finance. The aquanaut heroes were given the title of Heroes of Russia and sent into retirement. The names of the submariners are classified to this day.

Although they should be honored as the first cosmonauts, because they paved the way into the deep hydrospace of the Earth.

Now experiments on liquid breathing have been resumed; they are being carried out on dogs, mainly dachshunds. They also experience stress.

But researchers feel sorry for them. As a rule, after underwater experiments they are taken to live in their home, where they are fed delicious food and surrounded with affection and care.

Amphibian Man

Modern science does not stand still. Every year there are more and more new studies, thanks to which there are discoveries. Scientists are working to invent many new substances, as well as many new features of living things. Specially trained people are engaged in setting up experiments, studying living beings. Sometimes we wonder, can man fly? Is it possible to live to be a hundred years old? Is it possible to freeze a person and unfreeze them after 100 years? And finally, can a person breathe liquid, that is, under? These are the questions that scientists are dealing with, working on setting up various tests.

Unfortunately, all these experiments are most often carried out on animals, however, for new and new discoveries they do not feel sorry for anything or anyone. Let's think together: is it really possible to breathe underwater? What can make a person step beyond the boundaries of reality and breathe under water as easily as in air? Can this be made a reality? This is exactly what our article will discuss.

Brainstorm - Amphibian Man

Liquid breathing. It's real?

So, is it possible to breathe water? In order to better understand whether this is real, let's give an idea of what liquid breathing is? Liquid breathing is liquid ventilation of the lungs or breathing with a liquid that dissolves oxygen well. Breathing liquid itself means filling the lungs with a liquid that is saturated with oxygen. With liquid breathing, oxygen enters the blood. But not all water is suitable for such a process. The most successful examples for such breathing are perfluorocarbon compounds. They are good solvents of oxygen and carbon dioxide, and also have low surface tension. In addition, they are not metabolized at all in the body, which is required for such a process. But what is this breathing used for? When setting up certain types of experiments, liquid breathing can be used when diving to great depths and even for intensive treatment of diseases.

How will his body react to the fact that breathing will be carried out not with air, but with water? Is it possible? Let's try to answer this question. Saying the phrase “amphibian man” out loud, everyone comes to mind the legendary novel by Alexander Belyaev “Amphibian Man”. This novel created a huge resonance of opinions among all readers. Some believe that this cannot happen in principle, because it is unrealistic. But there are other opinions. The plot of this novel is how a surgeon was able to transplant the gills of a young shark little boy. As a result, after the operation the boy could live peacefully under water. The famous science fiction writer described this process so plausibly that some had no doubt that this could be done. The work received such a loud public response that, according to a Soviet surgeon, he was approached by a man who came to him with a request to transplant catfish gills, since the shark is not found in his area. This man was ready to do anything, he was ready to give a special receipt, if only this operation would take place. He was not afraid of death or any negative outcome of the situation. However, the surgeon was adamant. After all, at that time everyone understood perfectly well that this was just a fiction.

Jacques Yves Cousteau, the famous oceanographer, was confident that this operation would become real. He believed that progress does not stand still, scientists are able to decide on this experiment. However, no one decided to undertake such an operation. But one day there was news in the tabloid press that a young man from Cape Town had undergone surgery to transplant shark gills. Allegedly, the young man suffered from pulmonary insufficiency and was ready for any outcome of events. It was also said that the transplant operation was successful, and doctors are monitoring the patient, trying to ensure that there is no rejection of the transplanted organ. But there was no further news about this event. But what do scientists say about this? Have any special studies been carried out on this topic?

Scientists' opinion about human breathing with liquid

In the 50s of the 20th century, Professor Johannes Kylstra created his own theory about breathing liquid. In his opinion, since absolutely identical processes occur in the gills and lungs of animals and humans, a person will be able to breathe perfectly under water, but there is one condition. The amount of oxygen specifically required for human breathing must be dissolved in the air.

In 1959, the same professor conducted a lot of experiments that showed stunning results. The experiment was carried out on mice. They were immersed in a special physiological solution, in which an environment was created that was accessible for breathing under water. So, at a certain pressure, mice were able to live in such an environment for several hours! Kylstra was the first to believe that the animal could live in water. However, it was not scientists who became interested in his work, but various intelligence services of the US Navy Department. In this experiment, they found an opportunity that could save the lives of many people who find themselves in an unfavorable situation. It was of great importance, which is why the further development of this kind of project was classified. However, judging by the results so far, it has not been possible to create an amphibian.

However, after some time, information appeared in the press that an experiment was carried out in the USA with the first ichthyander on the planet. Judging by press reports, a certain Francis Faleichik was given anesthesia to his throat. The description of the procedure stated that a special tube was inserted into the man’s trachea, and through it the lungs were filled with a specialized solution. In addition, it was said that the young man breathed underwater for 4 hours.

Scientists and their experiments

There are many examples of how scientists sought to make an amazing discovery: a person can breathe underwater! So, in 1976, American biochemists managed to create a special device that could extract oxygen from sea water and provide them to those who dive to great depths. The most important thing in this process is that the diver could breathe underwater indefinitely.
Scientists began their experiment with the fact that hemoglobin is the substance that delivers oxygen from the lungs, as well as gills, to all cells of the body. At the very beginning of the study, scientists took blood from their own veins, then mixed it with polyurethane and immersed it in water. As a result, these clots absorbed oxygen dissolved in water. Next, scientists found a blood substitute. To do this, they decided to soak a finely porous material, which is still unknown, with a hemoglobin activator, thereby increasing its accumulation. Thus, a special device was born that operates on the principle of ordinary gills: it absorbs oxygen from sea water, allowing the diver to remain under water indefinitely. However, indefinitely - only theoretically. This invention was purchased by an American company for a lot of money, or more precisely, for a million dollars. However, this device never went on sale.
However, we are talking about a technical device, that is, the goal of all scientists involved in these developments is to “force” a person to breathe independently under water. That is, try to extract oxygen from water on your own. In other words, breathe liquid on your own.
It is worth noting that similar experiments are carried out to this day. Thus, in one of the Russian research institutes an experiment was conducted on a volunteer. Due to surgical intervention, the volunteer had a completely absent larynx. This pathology is very dangerous. The whole point is that a person simply did not have an innate reaction of the body to water. If even one drop hits the sensitive cells of the bronchi, the annular muscle compresses the throat so much that spasms occur, which are accompanied by suffocation. Thus, the volunteer simply did not have this muscle, which contributed to the successful outcome of the experiment. This experiment consisted of pouring a solution into the lungs of a person one by one. The man worked his abdominal muscles in order to mix the specially poured solution. In this solution, the composition of salts corresponded to the content of salts in the blood. After the solution was poured into the patient, he immersed himself in the water, having first put on special mask. After conducting an experiment, this solution was successfully and completely painlessly pumped out.
Scientists say that in the future everyone will be able to breathe underwater ordinary people with a normal throat. This belief is based on the fact that a reflex reaction to the body is just a matter of technique that any healthy person can comprehend.

Breathe underwater. Reality or myth?

Unfortunately, many experiments conducted by scientists remained just experiments. At the moment, in the 21st century, divers still dive with scuba gear, without using their own lungs in the fight against sea elements. All the beginnings of creating a special ichthyander remained only preparations, so to speak, drafts in preparation for a discovery at the level of a miracle. Perhaps with more careful study this issue and the possibility of breathing under water would appear, which would change the whole world.

However, there are many factors that contribute to preventing this from happening. Perhaps one of the most modern and most influential is financing. The frequency of experiments performed depends on this factor. However, not everything is as simple as it seems at first glance. Perhaps very soon the day will come that will change the usual perception of the concept that a person breathes exclusively air? Unfortunately, the scientists' verdicts are completely disappointing. The fact is that no matter how hard scientists try, no matter how much funding the project receives, long-term human life in the depths of water is a priori impossible.

But what is the main reason such a misunderstanding? The fact is that nature independently decides who should live and where. Fish must live in water; nature created gills for this. Man must live on land, that is why he has lungs. Of course, everyone has thought at least once about the question: is it really possible to fly? Or is it really possible to breathe underwater?

However, alas, such a person is not destined. People and fish, warm-blooded and cold-blooded creatures differ in too many factors. Although they undoubtedly have something in common. But this is too little in common. Nature created everything exactly as it should be. Otherwise, complete chaos would reign, which would possibly interfere with the life of all living things. So is the amphibian man. An amphibian man would not have endured the conditions of the ocean, its temperature. However, you can adapt to anything! But even here it’s past. Having adapted to the conditions of the ocean, he could not live on land. Such is nature and its laws. That is why, no matter how hard scientists and professors try, nature has put everything in its place. Going against nature is at least stupid, because all efforts are doomed to failure.

The ocean floor will never become a permanent place of human residence

However, man has something to do on the seabed. His physiological abilities, as well as the latest technical abilities, fully allow him to stay at the bottom for a long time. But the point is that we are talking about independent, that is, purely physiological breathing, and not with the help of technology.

Thus, we can conclude that very soon the ocean floor will be able to become a workplace for humans, but not a place of life and permanent residence. However, in a long-term study, a person can achieve stunning results, close to real breathing underwater. You just have to work hard on this issue. So, should I change modern history civilization to a person or not, depends only on him!