Nitric Oxide Will Get You Up The Mountain By: Luis Constantin MD You’re receiving this because you’re an aficionado of the Kyani Health Triangle… and nitric oxide (NO). So I thought we’d have another chat about an aspect of NO I hinted at when you signed up for Bytes. My home sits at just over 7,000 ft. – above mean sea level, of course. Just 25 minutes away is the base of the amazing Taos Ski Valley. That’s around 9,000 ft. As you mightve guessed, skiing is a popular winter sport here. Local folks like to compare number of days on the mountain. Especially retirees! Some of the oldest (you can ski free if your 80 or over) regularly complete the 45-minute hike from the top of Lift 2 to Kachina Peak. That puts them at 12,481 ft. for some of the steepest and challenging ridge skiing anywhere. And some – the ones out for glory or bragging rights – will do this several times a day, several days a week… all season long! I enjoying skiing, but I have to admit, I’m not one of the elite. In addition to the locals, people from everywhere visit the Taos Ski Valley all year long. They arrive in the summer for the cooler mountain climate or the winter for the skiing. Most hale from near sea level altitudes placing them at risk for any of several forms of altitude sickness. If your plans call for a trip to a higher elevation, knowing how to prevent altitude illness just might interest you. It turns out that one particular population well adapted to high altitude, Tibetans, may hold the key. Tibetans have a greater than 10-fold higher concentration of bioactive NO products in their blood. And that translates into enhanced blood flow and greater oxygen delivery. That’s why they’re so comfy living at 14,000 ft. When lowlanders acclimate to altitude, one of the adaptations involves the production of more S-nitrosohemoglobin. Read that one slowly. S-nitrosohemoglobin is one of several nitrogen containing compounds found in high concentrations in the red blood cells of those high altitude Tibetans. You’ll recall that hemoglobin picks up oxygen in your lungs and carries it to your tissues. S-nitrosohemoglobin is a form of hemoglobin that releases NO when oxygen levels are low. More NO = more blood flow = more oxygen to your oxygen starved tissues. There is good evidence that the dietary nitrate-nitrite-NO pathway works some of it’s magic by increasing S-nitrosohemoglobin levels. And inhaled NO does the same. We haven’t proven that taking a nitric oxide progenitor will prevent altitude sickness. But knowing what you know now, doesn’t it make sense to make sure you’ve got plenty of NO on board when visiting high altitude country? And in case you didn’t know, that’s exactly the rationale for using sildenafil (Viagra) to treat high altitude pulmonary edema – a very nasty form of altitude sickness. More on NO later, Johanna. Dr. C
Posted on: Mon, 18 Nov 2013 02:51:59 +0000
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