Health and Altitude Info of Tibet

Plan your route to manage altitude sickness; the main thing is to give your body enough time to acclimatize before going higher. Be prepared to adjust your plans, descend or spend a few extra days acclimatizing if it proves necessary. If you are very high up, the sun is going to be very strong. Bring and use sunscreen. Is recommended to those who just arrived at the plateau region: to not walk fast or run, to not do manual labour, don’t overeat in order to reduce the burden on the digestive organs, don’t drink and smoke, but eat vegetables and fruits rich in vitamins, stay warm, don’t bath to avoid cold and exhaustion. You can also take some drugs to mitigate altitude sickness, and butter is also good to mitigate altitude sickness.

When travelling in the countryside be prepared for the vehicle to break down and for bad weather. Carry a snack and some warm clothes. Water and fluids are essential.

Beware of the dogs! In the cities there are numerous stray dogs about and in the country side the villagers and nomads keep large guard dogs for security, (usually chained up). A modest level of caution is enough to prevent you from being bitten, as the strays usually run in packs and if you don’t get too close you should be okay. If guard dogs are unchained, keep them at bay by staying away from the house or tent they are protecting at all costs as their barking will indicate they have picked you up on their radar and pray they don’t come running after you. If they do, pick up (or pretend to pick up) some stones and be prepared to be attacked at the ankle. Sometimes kicking or lunging at the dogs before they attack may scare them off. Some other ways to protect yourself is by wearing boots and thick pants. Much is made of the viciousness of the Tibetan dogs, but few travellers have problems with them.