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Body Composition and Endocrine Adaptations to High-Altitude Trekking in the Himalayas

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Advancements and Innovations in Health Sciences

Part of the book series: Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology ((CLEXBI,volume 1211))

Abstract

Long-term exposure to high altitude causes adaptive changes in several blood biochemical markers along with a marked body mass reduction involving both the lean and fat components. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of extended physical strain, due to extensive trekking at high altitude, on body composition, selected biomarkers in the blood, and the protective role of a high-protein diet in muscle dysfunction. We found that physical strain at high altitude caused a significant reduction in body mass and body fat, with a concomitant increase in the cross-sectional area of thigh muscles and an unchanged total lean body mass. Further, we found reductions in plasma leptin and homocysteine, while myoglobin, insulin, and C-reactive protein significantly increased. Creatine kinase, lactate dehydrogenase, and leptin normalized per body fat were unchanged. These findings demonstrate that high-altitude hypoxia, involving extended physical effort, has an impact on muscle function and body composition, facilitating sarcopenia and affecting body mass and fat distribution. It also activates pro-inflammatory metabolic pathways in response to muscular distress. These changes can be mitigated by a provision of a high-protein diet.

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Acknowledgments

Our thanks go to all the porters and Sherpas, whose role was crucial to the success of this scientific project.

Competing Interests

The authors declare no competing interests in relation to this article.

Ethical Approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. The study was approved by the Bioethics Committee of “G. D’Annunzio” University of Chieti-Pescara in Italy.

Subjects’ Consent

Written informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Padova, Padova, Italy

    Gerardo Bosco, Antonio Paoli, Alex Rizzato & Giuseppe Marcolin

  2. Department of Medicine and Aging, “G. D’Annunzio” University of Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy

    Maria Teresa Guagnano

  3. Department of Biomedical Sciences for Health, University of Milan, Milan, Italy

    Christian Doria

  4. Department of Critical Care and Internal Medicine, Second Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang, China

    Suwas Bhandari

  5. Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, “G. D’Annunzio” University of Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy

    Tiziana Pietrangelo

  6. Department of Psychological Sciences, Health and Territory “G. D’Annunzio” University of Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy

    Vittore Verratti

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  1. Gerardo Bosco
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  2. Antonio Paoli
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Vittore Verratti .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Opole Medical School, Opole, Poland

    Mieczyslaw Pokorski

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Bosco, G. et al. (2019). Body Composition and Endocrine Adaptations to High-Altitude Trekking in the Himalayas. In: Pokorski, M. (eds) Advancements and Innovations in Health Sciences. Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology(), vol 1211. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/5584_2019_414

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