The Older You Are, The Harder it Gets….

No, we’re not talking about Viagra.  In a recent study conducted by a University of Washington biology professor, the effects of age on Mt. Everest  seem to play a pivotal role in overall survival.

The study was conducted to learn the effects of age and to perhaps see if condition or experience played a bigger role in overall success on the world’s highest mountain.  The team of researchers studied 2,200 climbers who atempted to climb Mt. Everest between 1990 and 2005.

This study revealed that a person’s overall success on Everest drastically decreased once the person hit 60 years old.  Before 60, your chances of making a successful summit is close to 31 percent, after 60, that number drops to 13 percent.

The overall risk of dying on Mt. Everest went up as well–1.5 percent compared to 5 percent of those 60 and older.

Also, if you indeed reached the summit of the world’s highest peak, 2.2 percent would die compared to 25% of those 60 and older, on the descent.

This study was recently published Online in the Aug. 15 issue of Biology Letters.