Reduction of Postprandial Lipemia after Acute Exposure to High Altitude Hypoxia

Abstract

The effects of acute exposure to high altitude hypoxia upon plasma levels of lipids and lipoproteins were studied in 6 healthy subjects observed under strict dietary control. Fasting and postprandial values, first measured at low altitude (< 300 m), were compared to values measured 7 days after transfer by helicopter to the Observatoire Vallot (4350 m) near Mont-Blanc. Plasma levels of catecholamines and thyroid hormones were measured in parallel. Under normoxic conditions, a rise in plasma levels of cholesterol, triglycerides and phospholipids was found 4 hr after the test-meal, whereas circulating norepinephrine fell. Under hypoxic conditions, postprandial effects on lipid parameters disappeared, lipemic responses to the test-meal were dramatically reduced and plasma levels of norepinephrine increased. These effects were accompanied by a fall in triglyceride-rich lipoproteins, generally associated with a slight elevation of HDL-cholesterol, especially the less dense HDL2 fraction. When all results obtained in normoxic and hypoxic conditions were analyzed together, a series of highly significant correlations were found between the magnitude of postprandial lipidemia and various lipid parameters, in particular HDL2-cholesterol which was negatively correlated. These observations strongly suggest that high altitude hypoxia, independent of interfering variables such as exercise training or cold exposure, induced a net stimulation of the lipolysis of plasma triglycerides.

Key words

Altitude hypoxia - postprandial - lipoproteins - plasma lipids