The Best way to beat altitude Sickness

For Lares Trek to Machu Picchu, we recommended some items to help with the Altitude sickness: You can prevent or diminish altitude sickness -which typically occurs above 8000 feet- if you follow this advice:

• Rest Up. Get at least two 8 hours nights of sleep, and make sure you are well hydrated before you start; you can also acclimatize by spending 2 or 3 days at high altitude.
• Don’t race.- you have to climb up slower than your normal walking pace. If you need to rest after ascending only 20 yards, you are flirting with exhaustion and need to dial it back.
• Dig deeper.- When your legs turn to stone or you feel nauseous, we suggest pressure breathing: ‘Take a deep breath, then force air out through pursed lips like you are blowing out a candle. Do this 3 to 4 times a minute; vigorous respiration pushes more oxygen from the lungs into the bloodstream.

Lares Trek Altitude Sickness

The altitude sickness occurs when you cannot get enough oxygen from the air at high altitudes. This causes symptoms such as a headache, loss of appetite, and trouble sleeping. It happens most often when people who are not used to high altitudes go quickly to lower altitudes. For example, you may get a headache when you drive over a high mountain pass, hike to a high altitude, or arrive at a mountain resort.

Altitude-sickness is also known as acute mountain sickness (AMS), altitude illness, hypobaropathy, or Soroche, is a pathological effect of high altitude on humans, caused by acute exposure to low partial pressure of oxygen at high altitude. It commonly occurs above 2,400 masl (approximately 8,000 feet). Acute mountain sickness can progress to high altitude pulmonary edema (HAPE) or high altitude cerebral edema (HACE).The causes of altitude sickness are not fully understood.

The percentage of oxygen in air remains essentially constant with altitude at 21% up until 70,000 feet (21,330 m), but the air pressure (and therefore the number of oxygen molecules) drops as altitude increases — consequently, the available amount of oxygen to sustain mental and physical alertness decreases above 10,000 feet (3,050m). Altitude sickness usually does not affect persons traveling in aircraft because the cabin altitude in modern passenger aircraft is kept to 8,000 feet (2,440 m) or lower. A superficially related condition is chronic mountain sickness, also known as Monge’s disease, occurring only after prolonged exposure to high altitude. An unrelated condition, often confused with altitude sickness, is dehydration, due to the higher rate of water vapor lost from the lungs at higher altitudes.

What causes Altitude Sickness?

When you arrive to Cusco (3,400masl) you´ll find a very thin air; if you don´t get you acclimatization for at less two days your body suffer at high altitudes. When you go too high too fast, your body cannot get as much oxygen as it needs. So you need to breathe faster. This causes the headache and other symptoms of altitude sickness. As your body gets used to the altitude, the symptoms go away.

What are the symptoms for  Altitude Sickness?

• The symptoms of altitude sickness include:
• A headache, which is usually throbbing. It gets worse during the night and when you wake up.
• Not feeling like eating.
• Feeling sick to your stomach. You may vomit.
• Feeling weak and tired. In severe cases, you do not have the energy to eat, dress yourself, or do anything.
• Waking up during the night and not sleeping well.
• Feeling dizzy.