At high altitude, the barometric pressure is reduced, which also decreases the availability of oxygen. Humans exposed to this lower oxygen availability experience a decrease in physical and cognitive performance and can even develop diseases that range from unpleasant to potentially lethal. Despite these negative effects, there are over 200 million people who permanently live at altitudes above 2,000 meters, and many more who visit such altitudes for recreation or endurance training. Due to these large numbers, there is a great interest in research to advance our understanding of both the beneficial and harmful effects of altitude exposure on humans.

Altitude research is typically conducted at altitudes between 3,400 m and 5,000 m, since such severe altitudes produce a large effect that is easy to detect. However, the vast majority of altitude residents live at altitudes below 2,500 m. Whether the various effects that have been found at higher altitudes also occur at such moderate altitudes is barely explored.

The aim of this project is to fill this knowledge gap by investigating the effects of extended exposure to moderate altitude on healthy humans. Twenty-four people who normally live close to sea level will spend four weeks in a mountain hut located at an altitude between 2,000 and 2,500 m. During the sojourn in the hut, their diet and physical activity will be closely controlled. Before and throughout the sojourn, we will perform a large variety of measurements that will help us understand how moderate altitude exposure affects our health and physical performance.

Principal Investigators (PIs): Christoph Siebenmann, Hannes Gatterer (South Tyrol), Michael Furian (Switzerland)