American tourism influencers jumped into a seawater pool in Helsinki in a video, which caused a discussion on social media about the danger of cold shock. Others think that warning is unnecessary patronage.
Popular ones the adventure of US tourism influencers has sparked a discussion on social media about daring winter swimming and its dangers.
The uproar started with a video published at the end of December, in which Kara Buchanan jump into the seawater pool of the Allas Sea Pool in Helsinki's Kauppatori with a backflip. Her husband Nathan Buchanan follow in the video soon after by jumping head first into the frozen water.
The water temperature in Helsinki at that time was an average of two degrees Celsius.
The Buchanans are a couple from Nashville, Tennessee, with over 3.7 million subscribers on their travel-themed YouTube channel. The influential couple, who go by the name “Kara and Nate” on social media, shared the video shot at Allas Sea Pool at least on Facebook and in their Instagram story.
You can watch the video in the embed below.
In Finland, a social media influencer, for example, commented on the wild video Nora Shingler, who talked about the dangers of jumping into the open in an Instagram video. The video has been viewed more than 120,000 times.
In Shingler's opinion, tourism influencers are setting a dangerous example, especially for inexperienced winter swimmers. According to him, cold water can cause panic, and in a strange place, swimmers run the risk of drifting under the edge of the ice, falling into the current, or injuring themselves on rocks or ice.
Some commenters of the video have acknowledged the warning about the risks of winter swimming as a leavening of the rule of Finland.
HS tried to reach the Buchanans, but they did not respond to an interview request. It could be that they are blissfully ignorant of social media discussions in Finland.
Tub Sea Pool's Chief Operating Officer Emilia Alatalo says that he has not come across a video of American influencers.
“I can't say what happened in the case of this video, because we don't allow jumping. Fortunately, there have been no dangerous situations.”
The customers of Allas Sea Pool are informed about the rules, for example, by symbols on the edges of the pools, which even tourists who do not know the language can understand. According to Alatalo, the spa also has swimming supervisors who are trained winter swimmers. They regularly expose themselves to cold water.
Although cold exposure has health benefits and, for example, it makes the pleasure hormones hum, careless splashing directly into the freezing water can cause cold shock. Reflexive cold shock can at worst cause fainting or cardiac arrest.
Alatalo thinks it's great that Finnish exoticism and seasons are being brought up on social media, although this time in somewhat contradictory ways.
“People take a lot of pictures with us in such wonderful, sunny, freezing weather. After all, it's an experience, especially for those coming from further afield.”
The seaside resort Allas Sea Pool is popular with tourists.
Suomen Latu ry advises those interested in winter swimming to start the hobby moderately.
According to the outdoor association, the head should not be wet in the open, because the blood vessels of the head do not contract in the cold. It can lead to hypothermia and trigger a migraine attack. So you shouldn't jump or dive into the water.
It is also important for a winter swimmer to remember to move calmly and focus on breathing. The first few times, the cold water can block your breathing.
According to Suomen Ladu, the biggest accident risk in the hobby is slipping on the path.
#Winter #swimming #tourist #diver #jumped #icecold #water #Helsinki #caused #stir #social #media
