Condition
Acute Mountain Sickness
Acute mountain sickness is the headache, nausea, fatigue and poor sleep that can follow climbing to high altitude faster than the body can adjust to thinner air. Ginkgo biloba has the most support, and across six trials with over 800 people, symptoms eased, with moderate evidence. Rhodiola's active compound has mostly been studied in the lab, and gradual ascent remains the best-established approach.
Sources: PMID 12006162; PMID 15070635
- Supplements studied
- 3
- Graded outcomes
- 2
- Trials
- 7
- People studied
- 817
Evidence by supplement
- Strong
- Moderate
- Limited
- Very limited
| Grade | Outcome | Effect | Size | Studies | People | Studies list |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acute Mountain Sickness Symptoms Moderate Improvement | Improves (the measure goes down) | Moderate effect | 6 studies | 818 people | ||
Studies that measured acute mountain sickness symptoms
| ||||||
| Blood Pressure | Improves (the measure goes down) | 3 studies | 36 people | |||
| Heart Rate | Improves (the measure goes down) | 36 people | ||||
| Oxygen Uptake | Improves (the measure goes up) | 36 people | ||||
| Grade | Outcome | Effect | Size | Studies | People | Studies list |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hypoxia Tolerance Bioinformatics and metabolomics research suggests salidroside exerts anti-hypoxic effects by regulating the PTEN-mediated PI3K/Akt/NF-κB signaling pathway. Traditional use of Rhodiola at high altitude is consistent with this mechanism, but direct clinical evidence for isolated salidroside is lacking. | Improves (the measure goes up) | Small effect | 5 studies | |||
Studies that measured hypoxia tolerance | ||||||
| Grade | Outcome | Effect | Size | Studies | People | Studies list |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Motion Sickness Symptoms | Changes; see studies | 1 study | 83 people | |||
Studies that measured motion sickness symptoms | ||||||
Key findings
- Acute Mountain Sickness SymptomsImproves (the measure goes down)
- Hypoxia ToleranceImproves (the measure goes up)
The Acute Mountain Sickness Prevention & Relief protocol
2 primary supplements · 6 supporting supplements
- Ginkgo Biloba80–120 mg standardized extract twice daily, starting 5 days before ascent
- Iron (if deficient)Check ferritin before trip; supplement if <50 ng/mL with 30–60 mg elemental iron daily
Shop the evidence-backed picks
Support alongside medical care. These supplements are not a treatment for Acute Mountain Sickness. If you are being treated for it, talk to your clinician before adding one: supplements can interact with medicines.
The collection holds the supplements we grade A or B for its theme, in products from the Fullscript catalog. It opens in our Fullscript store. You can look through it without signing in; Fullscript asks for a free account to order.
Or shop one supplement
The supplement graded A or B for Acute Mountain Sickness. Each opens the products we list for that supplement.
- Grade B
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Studies cited
15 studies from PubMed
- Network pharmacology analysis combined with experimental validation to explore the therapeutic mechanism of salidroside on intestine ischemia reperfusion.
- Salidroside in the Treatment of NAFLD/NASH.
- Safety of a Sustainably Produced, Bioengineered, Nature-Identical Salidroside Compound.
- The bioinformatics and metabolomics research on anti-hypoxic molecular mechanisms of Salidroside via regulating the PTEN mediated PI3K/Akt/NF-κB signaling pathway.
- Salidroside exhibits anti-dengue virus activity by upregulating host innate immune factors.
- Acute effects of Ginkgo biloba extract on vascular function and blood pressure
- Effect of Ginkgo biloba on blood pressure and incidence of hypertension in elderly men and women
- Effects of a Ginkgo biloba extract on forearm haemodynamics in healthy volunteers
- EGb 761 in control of acute mountain sickness and vascular reactivity to cold exposure
- Ginkgo biloba and acetazolamide prophylaxis for acute mountain sickness: a randomized, placebo-controlled trial
- Ginkgo biloba decreases acute mountain sickness in people ascending to high altitude at Ollagüe (3696 m) in northern Chile
- Ginkgo biloba does--and does not--prevent acute mountain sickness
- Randomised, double blind, placebo controlled comparison of ginkgo biloba and acetazolamide for prevention of acute mountain sickness among Himalayan trekkers: the prevention of high altitude illness trial (PHAIT)
- Ginkgo biloba for the prevention of severe acute mountain sickness (AMS) starting one day before rapid ascent
- Oral antioxidant supplementation does not prevent acute mountain sickness: double blind, randomized placebo-controlled trial