![]() ![]() ![]() In addition to this, great elevations also make you more susceptible to dehydration, which can exacerbate the symptoms of altitude sickness. This condition is called hypoxia, and it’s what causes altitude sickness symptoms to set in. But despite this effort, there’s still less oxygen making it into your blood and muscles, which is why physical activities feel so much harder at higher elevations. In response, your body tries to get the oxygen it needs, so you start breathing more rapidly. For example, at 10,000 feet, you only get 69 percent of the oxygen you’d get at sea level.Įssentially, the higher you go, the less efficient your breathing becomes, resulting in less and less oxygen every time you inhale. At high altitudes, there’s less atmospheric pressure, which reduces the number of oxygen molecules in a given volume of air compared to the same volume at a lower elevation. It’s not a matter of composition, but concentration. “You’re still breathing 21 percent oxygen, it’s just more spread out,” explains Graham Prather, education manager at National Outdoors Leadership School (NOLS) and in charge of wilderness medicine courses. Contrary to popular belief, altitude sickness doesn’t happen because there’s less oxygen the higher you go. ![]()
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