A wetsuit is an essential for all whitewater kayakers.
They should be used with whatever other outerwear you are wearing to keep yourself warm in the ice cold water of many rivers.
Wetsuits have been around for quite some time and the technology and design of them has only improved in recent years.
They began with the basic, classic style of a wetsuit that covered the whole body below the neck with the exception of the arms.
Paddlers with these cover their arms and upper torso better with a paddling jacket or full dry suit.
The way a wetsuit works is it traps a very fine layer of water in between your skin and the suit.
When you swim in water regularly, the water will wisk away any body heat you generate quickly.
You can however heat up the small thin layer of water quite quickly and comfortably so that you are sitting in a warm suit of water for the rest of the day! Another comfort thing that a wetsuit provides is that when you do go for a swim out of your boat through rapids, it provides a thick layer of protection and cushioning for your body against rocks and other impacts you may get.
When you go to get a wetsuit, aim to get one that has a thinner layer than the suits that are used by people scuba diving.
When you are kayaking it takes a much greater range of movement to be able to control the boat than it does to go scuba diving, so you need a thinner more flexible suit.
Aim for one that has around a 2 to 3 mm thickness as this will give you an appropriate mix between warmth you need to survive and movement you need to have fun.
A wetsuit should also not be too tight.
It should be comfortable for you!