Most people who have done a bit of reading or research into high altitude climbing will have read about Mountain Sickness. For those who have not, or for those that want some more information, we have provided this section giving a good overview of mountain sickness and how to prevent it while climbing Mount Kilimanjaro
Mountain Sickness on Mount Kilimanjaro
Mountain sickness is the effects of lack of oxygen on the body. All your organs need oxygen to survive and when the body doesn’t get enough, problems arise. As you gain altitude, the air pressure drops and as it drops your body takes in less air and therefore less oxygen with each breath. To counteract this, your body begins to adapt. Your breathing and heart rate increases and your body makes more red blood cells to carry oxygen. While your breathing and heart rate can change very quickly, the crucial extra red blood cells take a few days to form. Climb too far too fast before this process gets properly under way and the result is AMS (Acute mountain Sickness).
Unless you have climber Mount Meru before hand or have recently come back from another high altitude climb it’s almost a dead cert that you will get some mild or moderate mountain sickness and this is no reason to stop your climb. Usually drinking some extra water, knocking back a few aspirin and having a good night’s rest will leave you feeling much better. Typical symptoms of mild AMS include a headache, slight nausea, loss of appetite and problems sleeping. Moderate AMS brings with it a headache that will not be shifted by painkillers and some vomiting. While sufferers of mild AMS can continue on, those with moderate AMS really need to take it easy for a bit to give them a chance to recover. This is why we always plan for 2 3-4 hour days before going for the summit. These shorter days give folks a chance to recover, greatly increasing their changes of making it to the top.
Thomas gives everyone a medical each morning and will be monitoring your progress closely throughout the day. If in any doubt about how your feeling chat to him, he is a fully trained medic, carries a well-equipped first aid pack and really does know his stuff.
Preventing AMS and enjoying your climb of Mount Kilimanjaro
It is important to note that almost all severe AMS cases on Mount Kilimanajro are climbers on a shoestring budget who have cut days to save money (a false economy as the chances of reaching the summit fall dramatically if days are cut from the itinerary). This is why all of our climbs allow for proper acclimatization; we would do it no other way. For info on Diamox see our inoculations and tablets page.
Pole Pole!
The unofficial motto of Mount Kilimanjaro is Pole Pole, meaning slowly slowly in Swahili. By taking your time and enjoying the climb each day, taking plenty of rest stops and photographs, and also drinking 3-4 litres of water a day you can minimize the effects of mountain sickness. By far the best way to aid acclimatization and to give you the best possible shot for the summit is to take a rest day. A rest day involves a short morning trek to a higher altitude for lunch before returning to camp, or else heading for one lesser-visited camps for some extra exploring and to spend the night before rejoining the main trail. There are some beautiful walks across the Shira Plateau and camps at the Western Breach and Mawenzi can be used for acclimatization, as well as providing spectacular views most climbers don’t get to see. Taking it slow, eating well, resting well and taking a drink every few minutes (the platypus-style water bags that go in your pack and allow you to drink hands-free are very useful for this) will go a long way to getting you up the mountain and making your time as enjoyable as possible.