 Poster: A snowHead
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stoatsbrother, Just back from my very sunny week in Zermatt. Took exactly the same Pulse Ox as you. I run at 98 - 99% down here at nearly sea level, and was 96% up in resort, increasing to 97% after 1 week. (The morning after we finished the duty free was 94%, I found that quite shocking, so its not just the dehydration...) Day 2 up at Klein Matterhorn was 89%, and by day 6 increased to 91%. My resting pulse didn't increase at all from usual baseline of 50 at rest (but it did at the cost of the ski pass!). I have had altitude sickness once at 14,500 ft so was surprised to see figures as high as this compared to yours Have you ever had altitude sickness?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Only just seen this thread, as we were away when Stoat started it. Very interesting - & presumably explains why the cardio machines at the gym seem so much easier after a couple of weeks at altitude?
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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And I was 83-84% at the top of Cervinia after 30 minutes in a bar.
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So what was your C2H5OH level?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Perhaps take an intoximeter along next time too!
This is interesting research but needs a larger sample for validity. May I suggest the EoSB crowd? It'd be good to compare those with higher/lower general fitness, alcohol & nicotine levels. Also would be interesting to look at those fully acclimatized. It may or may not start to offer pointers about susceptibility to ams which seems pretty random.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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We've been trekking in Nepal a number of times. On the second trip we bumped into a doctor who was doing some research into the factors that affect high-altitude aclimatization. A whole bunch of us did some experiments for her including playing with an oxygenometer. We were in Dole at 4200m on our way up to Gokyo at 4800m. IIRC, mine was something like 82% at rest rising to 86% after a bit of hyperventilating. This was fairly normal for most trekkers. However, one woman was down at 65% and obviously struggling with the climb. We later discovered that she was on her way to Gokyo where her daughter had died the year before from pulmonary oedema. Genetics, obviously has a heavy influence.
By far the best was Jyamchang, our guide. His family came from the Tibettan plateau and, following the Chinese 'invasion', had settled in the Arun valley of Nepal. His was something like 93% at rest rising to over 95%. A good job too since he's now on his way up Everest again with a couple of American clients:
http://www.highhimal.com/
I'm always amazed at how sensitive the body is to oxygen. Climb up 100m and you can be gasping for air. Come back down and it's like playing in the fields again.
The Caudwell Xtreme Everest expedition did a bit of research into this too. It was covered by a BBC programme.
http://www.xtreme-everest.co.uk/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sn/tvradio/programmes/horizon/broadband/tx/everest/
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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All fascinating stuff. My OH gets altitude sickness (ie weakness/dizziness) as we discovered when we did a walk up towards the top (but not the top) of Mount Kenya. He couldn't easily carry the lightweight daypack - but I had no problem. We headed back down as soon as we realised he was being affected. He didn't feel great up the Aiguille du Midi a couple of weeks ago, but I think the extreme cold (ferocious wind chill) had more affect than the altitude when we were out on the viewing platforms.
We are going to LDA in June for the Fast 'n Easy summer training camp. We've been to LDA before, but always after some weeks here at 1550m. That, plus easiski's wise policy of sitting for a while with a coffee before doing anything strenuous meant he was OK. This June we will be going either from a week or so here, or 10 days down on the boat in Provence. I hadn't thought about it before reading this thread - but actually, going straight up from sea level (whether from home in the UK or the South of France) would not be a good idea at all.
Very interesting too the lower figure Martin Nicholas obtained after finishing the duty frees. Is this a well known effect of alcohol (ie lowering oxygen levels)? If so, I might have to persuade the OH that to get the best out of the ski training camp he will have to lay off the booze entirely that week. That's not going to go down well at all.
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The ability to acclimatise varies enormously, not from person to person, but also from trip to trip. Having been above 6000m quite a few times I have had all manner of experiences from aclimatising without any problems to real issues involving horrendous headaches, lassitude, nausea etc.
Those with a medical bent amongst you might find this interesting http://www.amazon.com/Going-Higher-Oxygen-Man-Mountains/dp/0898865808?tag=amz07b-21 The author, Charles Houston, (first syllable rhymes with house so his names isn't the same as the place in Texas) who although he is getting on a bit is still one of the leading experts in the field of how the human body behaves at high altitude
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Sadly,I have been reading Respiratory physiology textbooks recently, and in answer to those who are asking about the acclimatisation, here is what I understand. The longer you are at altitude, your body will respond by making more red blood cells with lovely haemoglobin in them to carry any last scrap of low pressure oxygen that is around. Your body also makes a chemical called 2,3 DPG [for short] that gives oxygen a 'shove' off haemoglobin so that the body tissues can greedily get as much oxygen as poss.
Living and training at altitude are simply a way for the body to make better oxygen carrying and unloading chemicals.
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