IF YOU COULD scale everest and back in less than a week, would you do it? That’s exactly what a British expedition did, with the potential assistance of a secret ingredient: xenon gas.

Typically, ascending Everest takes six to ten weeks for acclimatization to the thin air. Skipping this can lead to severe altitude sickness, with symptoms like headaches, nausea, weakness, brain swelling, and even death.

Xenon gas has been proposed as a way to shorten adaptation time and improve performance at high altitudes. In May, a British group, including four special forces members, completed a charity summit of Everest in just three days with Furtenbach Adventures, a company specializing in speed ascents using xenon. Thier aim was the fastest Everest ascent from London-summit and return in under 7 days-in support of the bereaved children of fallen veterans.

Anthony ‘Staz’ Stazickler, 41, a member of the team, noted the expedition’s unique approach, combining supplemental oxygen, pre-acclimatization in hypoxic tents, and potentially, xenon gas.

The Science of Xenon and Altitude

“In realistic doses, for realistic time periods, in realistic peopel, it just doesn’t improve athletic performance,”

Xenon is a noble gas that has been explored for its potential benefits in athletic performance, particularly in environments with low oxygen levels. The idea is that it might stimulate red blood cell production, aiding oxygen delivery to muscles.

However, research on xenon’s effectiveness in enhancing athletic performance is limited and somewhat contradictory. Some studies suggested potential benefits, while others have found no significant impact.

Does Xenon Really Work?

Despite initial excitement, news broke about Russian athletes potentially doping with xenon.However, when tested, evidence wasn’t found that it assists in athletic performance.

Studies have tested xenon doping on athletic performance, and have ultimately found it has no effect. “In realistic doses, for realistic time periods, in realistic people, it just doesn’t improve athletic performance,” says Cornwell.

Those findings are more proven at high altitudes.

“We know already, from very well done studies, that once you get above about 4000 meters, an [increased amount of red blood cells] doesn’t improve climbing or exercise performance,” says Levine. For reference, Everest is about 8,848 meters high. Once you get to extreme hypoxic environments, the gradient of oxygen from the blood into the muscles gets so low that it doesn’t matter how many red blood cells you have.

The basis of success of this mission more likely lies in the amount of oxygen the team has access to, as well as an attribution to the climber’s great athletic abilities and rigorous training, Cornwell says. Supplemental oxygen was supplied at 8 liters per minute during the climb, which undoubtedly contributed to their ability to function during extreme hypoxia. The combination of the use of supplemental oxygen, the pre-travel use of hypoxic tents, and the climber’s seriously impressive physical fitness, all makes it arduous to know whether xenon gas had any impact at all on the success of the trek.

In this case, then, there’s really no way to know if the xenon did anything-other than create a stir in the climbing world.