'Sea Nomads' Are First Known Humans Genetically Adapted To Diving (nationalgeographic.com)

Posted by BeauHD on Friday April 20, 2018 @02:05PM from the years-in-the-making dept.

schwit1 shares a report from National Geographic: Most people can hold their breath underwater for a few seconds, some for a few minutes. But a group of people called the Bajau takes free diving to the extreme, staying underwater for as long as 13 minutes at depths of around 200 feet. These nomadic people live in waters winding through the Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia, where they dive to hunt for fish or search for natural elements that can be used in crafts. Now, a study in the journal Cell offers the first clues that a DNA mutation for larger spleens gives the Bajau a genetic advantage for life in the deep.

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Why the spleen matters by JoshuaZ · 2018-04-20 14:48 · Score: 5, Informative

From TFA: When you go hold your breath and are surrounded by water you have a bunch of physiological responses that happen automatically. One major one is that your spleen contracts delivering more red blood cells to your arteries. Since they have larger spleens, there's a larger reservoir of red blood cells ready to get pushed out when necessary.