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Article: Keeping your heart and lungs in peak condition. (heart and lung health)
- Article from:
- Current Events, a Weekly Reader publication
- Article date:
- January 1, 1998
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1998 Weekly Reader Corp. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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In May 1996, David Breashears, a famous mountaineer and filmmaker, struggled in the bitterly cold, oxygen-thin air as his team neared the peak of Mount Everest, the world's tallest mountain.
"Our fingers and toes went numb," he told National Geographic magazine, "as precious oxygen was diverted to our brains, hearts, and other vital organs. Climbing above 26,000 feet, even with bottled oxygen, is like running on a treadmill and breathing through a straw...."
Breashears had been on the mountain during the most tragic period in its history. In May 1996, eight people were killed on Mount Everest within a two-day period. A ferocious storm stranded ...