Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Managing AMS on Whitney

It is simply wrong to post absolute statements such as: "The body needs and will utilize 24 ounces per hour. Assuming a Whitney hike lasts 12 hours, that's 12 liters..."

The amount of water the body needs and will utilize varies a great deal. It depends on level of effort, humidity, temperature, body mass, initial state of hydration, etc. Anyone who has hiked in a variety of places under a variety of conditions knows this from direct experience.

Hi HikerMom (and everyone else),

Rest assured that I've already contacted my Dr. about this issue and I will no doubt be trying the Diamox, next altitude hike (with a test run before as well). (And maybe do another test with Ginko as I'm pretty familiar with it.)

It is fascinating to hear other people's experiences and opinions even if they are divergent. I'm pretty good about researching things so I will check into anything I read and not take it at face value (unless it is as well documented as Bob R's stuff <g>)

That is an interesting observation about motion sickness. I used to get car sick, but I've gotten really good at managing it (on mountain roads I make sure I'm the one who's driving, and when on a boat I'm out in the wind watching the horizon.) However it doesn't appear that I have inner ear issues. My balance is quite good (and learning rock climbing helped me get comfortable with sheer drop-offs) and I've never had problems with my inner ear.

This is all just underscoring for me that everyone's body is different in responding to drops in available oxygen, and maintaining hydration.

Ellen

Is the information on this page (information repeated ad nauseum in many medical journals) incorrect? It sure has worked for me relating to hydration.

http://www.lakerunclub.org/Hydrate.htm

Another site with essentially the same information on how much to hydrate:

http://www.bpr.com/triathlon/hydrating.htm

cakie -- Yes, the information is incorrect. For example, look at the following two statements from the second link:

1. "Fluid requirements increase dramatically during exercise in the heat."

That statement is correct. Fluid requirements vary dramatically depending on conditions.

2. The very next sentence says: "To determine how much you need to take in per hour during running multiply your weight in pounds by the average speed in miles per hour and divide by 28.5. For example, a 150-pound man running at 8 mph would need about 42 ounces (150 x 8 + 28.5 = 42.1)."

The first statement contradicts the second, which gives a single answer for something that varies dramatically. I think we all know this from experience. I drank 2 liters on a 10 mile hike yesterday. It was in the 90s. During the winter, I would have used perhaps half a liter and ended up as well hydrated.

Rainier and Shasta are considerably further north and cooler than Whitney and that seems to make a difference.

This is true but imagine the winds high on Rainier when a system is coming in low (as on our summit day). We all could have used more water but no one got AMS or even a headache.

I never said that I am against drinking as much as you can on any mountain. Cakie just made some assertions that fly in the face of what many climbers have proven to be true. Certainly there is always an academically correct (and scientifically plausible) way to do things. The problem is that all this tends to break down in the mountains and when this occurs it is the flexible mind and body that will summit and/or survive.

Of course do what you can to stack the odds in your favor...My guess is though that you just need a bit more time acclimatizing than most...Take Care!

I am always bewildered why people feel comfortable taking Gingko (which has been shown to be somewhat effective for AMS prevention) but are hesitant to take Diamox (proven effective and used in the military by people needing to quickly go to altitude without time for acclimating). I guess it's a West coast thing. You are doing the right thing by getting a prescription for Diamox 125-250 mg twice a day starting the day before your hike and using it as well while at altitude (see the New England of Journal of Medicine review already cited). You may have to bring this article to your doctor, unless the doctor by chance is versed in AMS prevention. Test it for side effects as if on your Whitney hike in advance of your hike. Water intake has not been shown to affect AMS. On my hike up Whitney June 10 of this year I carried 1 quart and a filter. I hiked up from the portal and back on only the 1 liter of intake. Everyone has their own biologic needs. One key is to adjust your clothing and pace to minimize sweating. It's interesting how we try to overthink what our ancestors did perhaps on a daily basis, i.e. walking 10-20 miles at altitude. Even without Gatorade!!

Joeski

I now have Diamox in hand and will try it out in August on the Mtneer's Route. (With a test run before that.)

Thanks to all for the insights!
Everyone's been so civil here unlike the troll/pretender-ridden mountain lion thread that I'm staying out of.

ellenclary:

Two comments:

you should never try anything for the first time whiel you are on the mountain. Try it first before you leave to be sure that you don't have any side effects that would spoil your trip.

look at ginkgo biloba as an alternative to diamox. It has been shown in well conducted clinical trials to be effective at reducing or eliminating AMS.

I went back and had success with Diamox!
Will post more in a new thread.

Glad the board is back.

congrats ellen. interestingly enough, on our recent summit of July 30th, the only one of our party of 6 that succumbed to AMS was the guy taking diamox. we think he went from portal to trail camp too fast.