Rowan Scarborough highlights a health issue for women on submarines:
On the surface, the Navy’s leadership has sounded exuberant in speaking publicly about its recent decision to begin deploying female sailors in the cramped confines of combat submarines by next year.
But behind the scenes, the prospect of coed submarines is presenting medical and ship-construction challenges.
A specialist on undersea medicine is warning Congress that the air inside a submarine can be hazardous to fetal development.
“Atmosphere controls are different between ships and a submarine’s sealed environment,” retired Rear Adm. Hugh Scott, a former undersea medical officer, told The Washington Times. “There are all types of organic traces that off-gas into the air that have to be removed by mechanical means. You just can’t open a window and let them out.”