Blood oxygen efficiency at altitude - research

[Vince]

I find this interesting because the results are counter intuitive . . you may or may not think so.

Due to a recent paper (published by a Cambridge academic) Himalayan Sherpa guides have less red blood cells (ie. haemoglobin) than lowlanders, therefore, I shall be giving up blood doping and instead will switch to the blood thinning agent 'warfarin'.

The study found that not all that much efficiency is gained by additional red cells as the blood circulates too slowly (he says like sucking treacle through a straw). Apparently the Sherpa's thin low red cell count blood whizzes around their bodies like the clappers and actually delivers more oxygen overall.

To indicate how thick it an get . . I went for a blood test and asked the nurse why the guy before me was with her for twenty minutes. She said his blood is so thick she couldn't get it up the needle. He should be on Warfarin I said . . "He is" she said.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08qxfrq#play

 

[HSNHSN]

If I recall correctly, people born in the Himalayas use a lot more myoglobin for oxygen transport and less haemoglobin. Since haemoglobin is inside red blood cells, whereas myoglobin isn't, the result of the study isn't that surprising. Using myoglobin as a more structural means of oxygen transport, however, is only useful if the amount of oxygen in the air is really low, as is the case at high altitude. Therefore, it wouldn't seem to be of much use as a doping product, since cycling races aren't raced near that high.

I have to admit my knowledge of biology is somewhat rusty, though, so please correct me if I remember this incorrectly.

 

[Aragon]

This phenomenom was discussed in detail in SI's David Epstein's 2013 excellent book The Sports Gene. It is about elevated levels of nitric oxide in their blood and he mentions researcher Cynthia Beall by name, I think referring (among other sources) to this paper:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3295887/

Epstein mentions that they aren't great endurance runners due to wrong body type, so that is perhaps the reason why there hasn't been that much collaboration between westerners and the local people...

...at least not in endurance sport related matters.

 

[Kokoso]

Due to a recent paper (published by a Cambridge academic) Himalayan Sherpa guides have less red blood cells (ie. haemoglobin) than lowlanders, therefore, I shall be giving up blood doping and instead will switch to the blood thinning agent 'warfarin'.

Warfarin is not blood thinning, warfarin decreases coagulation. That't two different thing. Btw. using warfarin while bike riding would be very, very dangerous.

The study found that not all that much efficiency is gained by additional red cells as the blood circulates too slowly (he says like sucking treacle through a straw). Apparently the Sherpa's thin low red cell count blood whizzes around their bodies like the clappers and actually delivers more oxygen overall.

I have some problem with this. We know for sure that higher haemoglobin means higher efficiency, that can't be denied. Sherpa's low red blood count may or may not be reason why they are performing better at altitude. I dare to say it is not the single reason. If it was, they perform better not only at altitude, but at "normal" levels above see, too. But they are not. Their advantage begins and/or grows at altitude

To indicate how thick it an get . . I went for a blood test and asked the nurse why the guy before me was with her for twenty minutes. She said his blood is so thick she couldn't get it up the needle. He should be on Warfarin I said . . "He is" she said.

Warfarin has nothing to to do with how thick is blood.