This is a common condition which is happening when you climb to a high altitude too quickly. The decrease in atmospheric pressure makes your breathing difficult because you are not able to take in as much oxygen. In most cases, people who suffer from altitude sickness are having mild conditions. The symptoms of this mild condition are including exhaustion, dizziness, nausea and vomiting, loss of appetite, feeling unsteady, upset stomach, shortness of breath, generally feeling unwell, difficulty sleeping, increased heart rate, and headache. There are some rare cases in which this condition can cause fluid to build up either in your brain or lungs. These are very serious conditions and they need immediate medical attention. The symptoms of severe altitude sickness are including confusion leading to loss of consciousness, clumsiness and difficulty walking, coughing up pink, frothy liquid, worsening breathlessness, and a bubbling sound in the chest. When you are having severe symptoms of altitude sickness, then this can mean that you are developing cerebral edema or pulmonary edema. These are potentially life-threatening complications of altitude sickness. If you suffer from this condition, then you need to talk you’re your doctor to be sure which the best treatment for you is.
13 Altitude Sickness – Natural Cures and Home Remedies
Contents
Eugenol
This is a component of volatile oil that is normally found in cloves, it works by decreasing the viscosity of the blood. It also ensures that enough fluid is retained in the blood. It thins your blood and this enhances the circulation of the blood to your body part into the important muscles. This will help you to maintain concentration because of a constant supply of oxygen in your brain. As a result, it helps you to evade sickness which is normally caused by the high altitude. What should be done is to take enough amounts when visiting high-altitude regions. [1]
Ginkgo Biloba
This herb is important in treating altitude sickness because it helps to improve blood flow [2]. This is done by ensuring that blood that passes through the cerebral vessels is efficiently flowing. It is also important because it will enhance the uptake of oxygen from your blood and its use in the brain as well as the nervous system. This will have the effect of reducing toxic edema which normally results from altitude sickness. It also works by preventing clumping and as well as sticking of your platelets. And this will help oxygen to be properly delivered to organs that need it. Prepare ginkgo tea and drink it whenever you feel signs of dizziness.
Rhodiola
This herb which normally grows in high elevated regions of the Himalayas has its seeds, as well as flowers, roots, leaves, and seeds, which are very important antioxidants as well as adaptogenic which makes it very effective for altitude sickness. For a long period of time, it has been used as an effective panacea. It works by enhancing both physical as well as mental energy [3]. It improves your ability to perform and raises your mental acuity. It also accelerates blood supply to both your brain and muscles. This, therefore, helps you to be able to concentrate and avoid altitude sickness.
Lemon soda
This is effective in preventing you from throwing up. It also works by curtailing the colloquial tendencies and this makes it an effective medication for this condition. What you are supposed to do with it is to prepare a glass of lemon soda and drink it any time you are feeling signs of dizziness and you are forced to throw up.
Ginger
Though it plays an important role in attending to mild altitude sickness ginger is a very important ingredient in solving the sickness. You can prepare it by mixing around twenty drops of it filled halfway with water. This will be effective in preventing cases of dizziness and keep you alert all the way. It is also good in preventing headaches and other symptoms that are associated with altitude sickness. [4]
Garlic 
It ensures that your blood gets thinner and flows at a rate at which it should be flowing. This helps to ensure that adequate oxygen is supplied to your brain to keep you alert all the time. This is important because these are the major things that are impacted by this condition. In this way it enhances, your stability and you are less likely to experience the symptoms of altitude sickness. What you should do is incorporate garlic in your main meals and it will be a great treatment for your condition
Cloves
This operates by making effective use of oxygen, in this manner it helps the blood to supply enough oxygen to your body part and this enhances your ability to get energy and remain stable. As a result, you are less likely to succumb to the effects of altitude sickness. This makes you stable and focused. Being a spice, it can also be used well when it is incorporated into the meals that you are eating and this will have a great impact on you.
Lavender oil
Being an outstanding sedative as well as relaxing component, lavender oil cannot fail you in healing up your altitude sickness condition. It relieves tension and headaches which are associated with high altitude and it makes you feel relaxed and eliminates anxiety in you [5]. This ensures that you are not troubled and you do not experience headaches that come as a result of high altitude. What should be done is to waft a small amount through your nose to enhance your ability to recover and regain your normal condition.
Drink water
When your breathing cycle is altered and it is made to be faster than normal, you are likely to go dehydrated as well. In this case, you are likely to be visiting the bathroom more frequently than normal. This is a normal occurrence when you are suffering altitude sickness and it is recommended that you drink a lot of water to help you gain your composures and recover.
Avoid exercise
Exercise accelerates the rate at which your body consumes oxygen and this can prove to be detrimental in the sense that with altitude sickness. This is because the oxygen supply is already reduced and the rate at which the body needs it when you exercise is extremely high this makes the condition to be even worse [6]. Therefore the most appropriate ailment for the condition is to avoid any activity which will subject your body to a high need for oxygen.
Eat digestible meals
Eating heavy meals, junk food, as well as those which are fatty, is not recommended. This is important because it will not subject your body to using a lot of energy which will make you use a lot of oxygen that the body cannot supply at that moment. Light food and digestible ones help you to prevent any instance of losing concentration and becoming even dizzy.
Lower ground
In order to evade extreme conditions when you experience altitude sickness what should be done immediately is it is possible is to look for lower grounds. This is important because it helps you to recover. This is important because it enables your body to effectively pump blood through your blood streams and enhance the effective supply of oxygen into your body tissues which will make it work properly.
Deep breath
This condition implies that more oxygen supply than what your blood can deliver to the brain is needed in this way deep breath will be significant because it helps to supply enough oxygen to the blood which in turn is supplied to your brain. This helps you to evade the condition of dizziness hence the ability to quickly adapt and recover. What you should be doing is take time and compose your body, ease up the tension and find a restful place. After this breath slowly takes deep breaths at a go and slowly releases out. This will help you to recover very fast from the condition and restore your stability as well as avoid the aches that you might be feeling due to the limited oxygen supply in your system.
Avoid alcohol
Alcohol at high altitude accelerates the rate at which you are getting drunk and this implies that when drunk you are not capable of controlling certain operations in your body effectively [7]. This, therefore, makes the condition worsen because you are not in a position to take charge of the system and the abnormal condition it is facing. In this way avoiding alcohol helps you to focus more on stabilizing your condition.
References:
[1] Khalil AA, ur Rahman U, Khan MR, et al. Essential oil eugenol: sources, extraction techniques and nutraceutical perspectives. Royal Society of Chemistry. 2017;7:32669-81.
[2] Mashayekh A, Pham DL, Yousem DM, et al. Effects of Ginkgo biloba on cerebral blood flow assessed by quantitative MR perfusion imaging: a pilot study. Neuroradiology. 2011;53(3):185-91.
[3] Ishaque S, Shamseer L, Bukutu C, Vohra S. Rhodiola rosea for physical and mental fatigue: a systematic review. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 2012;12:70.
[4] National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. Ginger. 2016. Retrieved from nccih.nih.gov/health/ginger
[5] Appleton J. Lavender oil for anxiety and depression. Natural Medicine Journal. 2012;4(2).
[6] Delp MD, Armstrong RB, Godfrey DA, et al. Exercise increases blood flow to locomotor, vestibular, cardiorespiratory and visual regions of the brain in miniature swine. The Journal of Physiology. 2001;533(Pt3):849-59.
[7] National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. State of the science report on the effects of moderate drinking. 2003. Retrieved from pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/ModerateDrinking-03.htm
