Information about Effects Of High Altitude On Humans
There are several effects of high altitude on humans:
The percentage saturation of hemoglobin with oxygen determines the content of oxygen in our blood. After the body reaches around 7000 feet (2100 m) above sea level, the saturation of oxyhemoglobin begins to plummet.[1]
This conundrum led to the development of the altitude training modality known as "Live-High, Train-Low" whereby the athlete spends many hours a day resting and sleeping at one (high) altitude, but performs a significant portion of their training, possibly all of it, at another (lower) altitude. A series of studies conducted in Utah in the late '90s by researchers Ben Levine, Jim Stray-Gundersen, and others, showed significant performance gains in athletes who followed such a protocol for several weeks. [2] [3]
Other studies have shown performance gains from merely performing some exercising sessions at altitude, yet living at sea-level. [4]
For those who wish to adjust to high altitudes, or to obtain the associated athletic performance, but without being at high altitudes, state-of-the-art altitude acclimatization devices exist. Chambers that reduce barometric pressure, or hypoxic systems (altitude tents or altitude rooms[5]) with increased nitrogen concentration (which reduces oxygen), are used by athletes to acclimatize to high altitudes.
To achieve the full potential athletic gains from at-rest altitude acclimatization, one must maintain altitude exposure for a significant period of time and the effects are only transitory. A study [6] using simulated altitude exposure for 18 days, yet training closer to sea-level, showed performance gains were still evident 15 days later.
The physiological adaptation that is mainly responsible for the performance gains achieved from altitude training, is a subject of discussion among researchers. Some, including American researchers Ben Levine and Jim Stray-Gundersen, claim it is primarily the increased Red Blood Cell Volume [7]. Others, including Australian researcher Chris Gore, and New Zealand researcher Will Hopkins, dispute this and instead claim the gains are primarily a result of other adaptions such as a switch to a more economic mode of oxygen utilization [8]
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Capillaries are the smallest of a body's blood vessels, measuring 5-10 μm, which connect arterioles and venules, and are
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The percentage saturation of hemoglobin with oxygen determines the content of oxygen in our blood. After the body reaches around 7000 feet (2100 m) above sea level, the saturation of oxyhemoglobin begins to plummet.[1]
Effects
Altitude acclimatization, the physiological adaptions to altitude, can have immediate and long term effects.Immediate effects
- Hyperventilation
- Fluid loss (due to a decreased thirst drive)
- Increase in heart rate (HR)
- Slightly lowered stroke volume
- Slight temptation for sexual activity
Longer term effects
- Lower lactate production (because reduced glucose breakdown decreases the amount of lactate formed).
- Compensatory alkali loss in urine
- Decrease in plasma volume
- Increased Hematocrit (polycythemia)
- Increase in RBC mass
- Higher concentration of capillaries in striated muscle tissue
- Increase in myoglobin
- Increase in mitochondria
- Increase in aerobic enzyme concentration
- Increase in DPG
- Hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction
- Right ventricular hypertrophy
Altitude and athletic performance
In the athletic arena, it is thought that acclimatization from living and training at high altitudes enhances performance compared to living and training at sea level. However, this may not always be the case. Any positive acclimatization effects may be negated by a de-training effect as the athletes are usually not able to exercise with as much intensity at high altitudes compared to sea level.This conundrum led to the development of the altitude training modality known as "Live-High, Train-Low" whereby the athlete spends many hours a day resting and sleeping at one (high) altitude, but performs a significant portion of their training, possibly all of it, at another (lower) altitude. A series of studies conducted in Utah in the late '90s by researchers Ben Levine, Jim Stray-Gundersen, and others, showed significant performance gains in athletes who followed such a protocol for several weeks. [2] [3]
Other studies have shown performance gains from merely performing some exercising sessions at altitude, yet living at sea-level. [4]
For those who wish to adjust to high altitudes, or to obtain the associated athletic performance, but without being at high altitudes, state-of-the-art altitude acclimatization devices exist. Chambers that reduce barometric pressure, or hypoxic systems (altitude tents or altitude rooms[5]) with increased nitrogen concentration (which reduces oxygen), are used by athletes to acclimatize to high altitudes.
To achieve the full potential athletic gains from at-rest altitude acclimatization, one must maintain altitude exposure for a significant period of time and the effects are only transitory. A study [6] using simulated altitude exposure for 18 days, yet training closer to sea-level, showed performance gains were still evident 15 days later.
The physiological adaptation that is mainly responsible for the performance gains achieved from altitude training, is a subject of discussion among researchers. Some, including American researchers Ben Levine and Jim Stray-Gundersen, claim it is primarily the increased Red Blood Cell Volume [7]. Others, including Australian researcher Chris Gore, and New Zealand researcher Will Hopkins, dispute this and instead claim the gains are primarily a result of other adaptions such as a switch to a more economic mode of oxygen utilization [8]
See also
References
1. ^ Kenneth Baillie and Alistair Simpson. Altitude oxygen calculator. Apex (Altitude Physiology Expeditions). Retrieved on 2006-08-10. - Altitude physiology calculator
2. ^ [1]
3. ^ [2]
4. ^ [3]
5. ^ [4]
6. ^ [5]
7. ^ [6]
8. ^ [7]
2. ^ [1]
3. ^ [2]
4. ^ [3]
5. ^ [4]
6. ^ [5]
7. ^ [6]
8. ^ [7]
External links
- Physiology at MCG 4/4ch7/s4ch7_32
- Altitude sickness and high altitude acclimatisation
- IPPA, High Altitude Pathology Institute.
High altitude are regions on the Earth's surface (or in its atmosphere) that are high above mean sea level. The composition and temperature of the atmosphere at high altitude is substantially different than at sea level.
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Hemoglobin, also spelled haemoglobin and abbreviated Hb, is the iron-containing oxygen-transport metalloprotein in the red blood cells of the blood in vertebrates and other animals.
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Hemoglobin, also spelled haemoglobin and abbreviated Hb, is the iron-containing oxygen-transport metalloprotein in the red blood cells of the blood in vertebrates and other animals.
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Acclimatization is the process of an organism adjusting to changes in its environment, often involving temperature or climate (In laboratory conditions, this same process is termed "Acclimation").
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Hyperventilation
Classifications and external resources
ICD-10 R 06.4
ICD-9 786.01
In medicine, hyperventilation (or overbreathing
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Classifications and external resources
ICD-10 R 06.4
ICD-9 786.01
In medicine, hyperventilation (or overbreathing
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Hypovolemia
Classification & external resources
ICD-10 E86, R57.1, T81.1, T79.4
ICD-9 276.52
In physiology and medicine, hypovolemia (also hypovolaemia) is a state of decreased blood volume; more specifically, decrease in volume of blood plasma.
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Classification & external resources
ICD-10 E86, R57.1, T81.1, T79.4
ICD-9 276.52
In physiology and medicine, hypovolemia (also hypovolaemia) is a state of decreased blood volume; more specifically, decrease in volume of blood plasma.
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Tachycardia
Classifications and external resources
ICD-10 R 00.0
ICD-9 785.0
MeSH D013610 Tachycardia is a form of cardiac arrhythmia which refers to a rapid beating of the heart.
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Classifications and external resources
ICD-10 R 00.0
ICD-9 785.0
MeSH D013610 Tachycardia is a form of cardiac arrhythmia which refers to a rapid beating of the heart.
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Stroke volume is the amount of blood pumped by the left ventricle of the heart in one contraction.
The stroke volume is not all of the blood contained in the left ventricle. The heart does not pump all the blood out of the ventricle.
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The stroke volume is not all of the blood contained in the left ventricle. The heart does not pump all the blood out of the ventricle.
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- This article is about sexual practices (i.e., physical sex). Broader aspects of sexual behaviour such as social and psychological sexual issues are covered in related articles such as human sexuality, heterosexuality, and homosexuality.
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Lactic acid (IUPAC systematic name: 2-hydroxypropanoic acid), also known as milk acid, is a chemical compound that plays a role in several biochemical processes.
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alkali (from Arabic: Al-Qalyالقلي, القالي ) is a basic, ionic salt of an alkali metal or alkaline earth metal element.
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Blood plasma is the liquid component of blood, in which the blood cells are suspended. It makes up about 55% of total blood volume. Blood plasma is prepared simply by spinning a tube of fresh blood in a centrifuge until the blood cells fall to the bottom of the tube.
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The hematocrit (Ht or HCT) or packed cell volume (PCV) are measures of the proportion of blood volume that is occupied by red blood cells. It is normally 45 ± 7 (38-52%) for males and 42 ± 5 (37-47%) for females.
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MeSH D011086 Polycythemia is a condition in which there is a net increase in the total number of red blood cells in the body. The overproduction of red blood cells may be due to a primary process in the bone marrow (a so-called myeloproliferative syndrome), or it may be a
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Red blood cells are the most common type of blood cell and the vertebrate body's principal means of delivering oxygen from the lungs or gills to body tissues via the blood.
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capillary is used to describe any very narrow tube or channel through which a fluid can pass. See capillary action for details.
Capillaries are the smallest of a body's blood vessels, measuring 5-10 μm, which connect arterioles and venules, and are
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Striated muscle can refer to:
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- Skeletal muscle
- Cardiac muscle
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Myoglobin is a single-chain globular protein of 153 amino acids, containing a heme (iron-containing porphyrin) prosthetic group in the center around which the remaining apoprotein folds.
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Aerobic is an adjective that means "requiring air", where "air" usually means oxygen.
Aerobic may also refer to:
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Aerobic may also refer to:
- Aerobic exercise, exercise of moderate intensity
- Aerobics, a form of aerobic exercise
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2,3-Bisphosphoglycerate (2,3-BPG, also known as 2,3-diphosphoglycerate or 2,3-DPG) is a three carbon isomer of the glycolytic intermediate 1,3-bisphosphoglycerate. 2,3-BPG is present in human red blood cells (RBC; erythrocyte) at approximately 5 mmol/L.
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Hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction is a physiological phenomenon in which pulmonary arteries constrict in the presence of hypoxia (low oxygen levels) without hypercapnia (high carbon dioxide levels), redirecting blood flow to alveoli with higher oxygen tension.
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MeSH D017380 Right ventricular hypertrophy (RVH) is a form of ventricular hypertrophy affecting the right ventricle.
Blood travels through the right ventricle to the lungs.
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Blood travels through the right ventricle to the lungs.
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An altitude tent, also known as an altitude simulation tent or a hypoxic tent, is an enclosed living space which simulates high altitude by maintaining a lower oxygen concentration.
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Altitude sickness
Classification & external resources
ICD-10 T 70.2
ICD-9 E902.0
DiseasesDB 8375 29615
eMedicine med/3225
MeSH D000532 Altitude sickness, also known as acute mountain sickness (AMS) or
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Classification & external resources
ICD-10 T 70.2
ICD-9 E902.0
DiseasesDB 8375 29615
eMedicine med/3225
MeSH D000532 Altitude sickness, also known as acute mountain sickness (AMS) or
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An altitude tent, also known as an altitude simulation tent or a hypoxic tent, is an enclosed living space which simulates high altitude by maintaining a lower oxygen concentration.
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A Gamow bag is an inflatable pressure bag that is large enough to fit a person inside. By inflating the bag with a foot pump, the effective altitude can be decreased as much as 1500 meters (5,000 feet). It is primarily used for treating severe cases of altitude sickness.
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Medical College of Georgia is the smallest of four research schools in the University System of Georgia (USG). MCG currently has 5 undergraduate and graduate schools on campus: The School of Medicine, School of Dentistry, School of Nursing, School of Allied Health, and Graduate
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respiratory system generally includes tubes, such as the bronchi, used to carry air to the lungs, where gas exchange takes place. A diaphragm pulls air in and pushes it out. Respiratory systems of various types are found in a wide variety of organisms.
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Human physiology is the science of the mechanical, physical, and biochemical functions of humans in good health, their organs, and the cells of which they are composed. The principal level of focus of physiology is at the level of organs and systems.
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