IHHT at the Park Igls Medical Spa Resort
While the advantages of classic altitude training have been known for decades, simulated altitude training is now finding ever broader areas of application away from competitive sports – and is part of a new therapy method known as IHHT.
Dr Peter Gartner and Dr Elias Hinteregger talk to us about the benefits of this therapy, give us insights into the processes it releases within cells, and explain why IHHT in combination with Modern Mayr Medicine at Park Igls is almost a true recipe for anti-ageing.
Interview
The experts
- Dr Peter Gartner: Medical Director at Park Igls Medical Spa Resort, general practitioner and Mayr doctor specialising in holisitic and dietary medicine, acupuncture and hypnosis.
- Dr Elias Hinteregger: Mayr doctor with a particular interest in how to maintain physical and mental health through lifestyle adaptations.
What is IHHT?
Details on IHHT
The acronym IHHT stands for Intermittent or Interval Hypoxia Hyperoxia Therapy. It means that a patient wearing a mask receives air with too little (hypoxia) and too much (hyperoxia) oxygen while the levels of oxygen in the blood are permanently monitored.
From classic high-altitude training to IHHT
A look inside the body's cells
Dr Gartner: A distinction must first be made between pure altitude training on the one hand and the combination of simulated altitude training and excessive oxygen treatment, as is the case with IHHT, on the other.
The birth of altitude training is associated with the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, which took place at an altitude of 2240 metres above sea level. At that time, the athletes had to adapt to the extraordinary conditions, which was easier for those who had trained at higher altitudes from the outset, such as the Ethiopian athletes from Abyssinia. This is how the idea came about to research what happens in the body at such altitudes, and this led to the development of altitude training.
A variation of altitude training is altitude adaptation training, which is used by mountaineers, for example. They deliberately stay at high altitudes and train there in order to be prepared for even more extreme conditions and altitudes later on.
The underlying mechanism in each case is that the body adapts to the low oxygen level, produces more red blood cells, and thus brings more oxygen into the blood, which in turn leads to increased performance.
Dr Hinteregger: The altitude training in IHHT is simulated, because the patient is not moving but instead is lying or sitting in a relaxed position and breathing air that contains too little oxygen.
The other part of IHHT, however, is the exact opposite of the lack of oxygen. Patients are given air to breathe that has a very high concentration of oxygen, up to 36%. It is precisely this alternation between too little (hypoxia) and too much (hyperoxia) that causes the mitochondria to begin to repair themselves or to be excreted. If they are irreparably damaged, they are driven into programmed cell death and make room for the growth of new mitochondria in the cells.
Dr Hinteregger: Mitochondria are a bit like the power plants of our cells. They give the cells the energy they need.
Dr Gartner: You can think of mitochondria as rechargeable cellular batteries that need to be regularly supplied with energy. They determine the performance of the cells. The stronger the battery, the stronger the cells. The older the battery, the slower and older the cells. But like any battery, they eventually run out.
If we could succeed in consciously stimulating these mitochondria to renew, then with a lot of medical reservation, we could call this anti-aging. And it is precisely this process that is stimulated by IHHT. That is why the term cell training is also used in this context – the cells are trained and strengthened by renewing their energy supply units, the mitochondria.
Dr Gartner: Although the IHHT has copied the advantages of altitude training, it is not primarily designed for sportsmen and sportswomen. It first required a long series of tests using scientific methodology to determine which limits should not be exceeded. Moreover, the discovery of the combination of hypoxia and hyperoxia is only a few years old. Here at the Park Igls Medical Spa Resort we waited a long time before adding IHHT to our range of services in order to have a comprehsive body of scientific evidence backing up its claimed benefits.
Dr Hinteregger: Just a few years ago, in 2019, the Nobel Prize for Medicine was awarded to three researchers who managed to decode precisely what happens at in mollecules when the human body is exposed to low level of oxygen.
Dr Gartner: If it's good enough for the Nobel Committee, then it's good enough for us (laughs).
The combination of Mayr Therapy and IHHT is the only treatment which truly deserves the name anti-ageing.
IHHT & Modern Mayr Medicine
The perfect match
Dr Hinteregger: Mayr Medicine is all about prevention, and IHHT is just that: preventive care for your own cell health with long-term effects. When we do IHHT, you can feel the positive effects for up to half a year afterwards.
Dr Gartner: When new mitochondria are formed after the old ones have been excreted – and this is the case with IHHT – they also need to be fed and fertilised so that they are ready for use. The body does this with the help of growth hormone, which is only released when sufficient periods of fasting are observed – one of the basic principles of Modern Mayr Medicine.
Proper anti-aging means minimising your evening meal as much as possible. This leads to the additional disposal of old mitochondria, and the distribution of growth hormone in the body causes the new mitochondria to start growing – and you literally wake up a day younger the next day!
Combine your passion for sport with our expertise for health
How does IHHT work?
Step by step
- The patient is asked to lie down and a face mask is placed over their nose and mouth.
- The level of oxygen in the blood is permanently monitored.
- The process starts by calibrating the machine which dispenses the oxygen - the minimum level of oxygen is adjusted depending on the physical condition of the individual patient.
- The first stage is hypoxia - depending on their level of fitness, the patient breathes in air with an oxgen concentration of 11-13%.
- The second stage is hyperoxia, where the patient breathes in air with around 36% oxygen concentration.
- If a patient's blood oxygen levels are too low, the concentration of oxygen in the air is increased. The therapy can also be stopped at any point - and in case of an emergency the machine turns off automatically.
Dr Hinteregger: A normal session lasts 40-50 minutes. You will be accompanied by a member of our team. We recommend that you do the IHHT at least 4-5 times to achieve a long-term effect.
IHHT places a strain on the body, so we recommend that the following groups of people do not undertake such a therapy:
- people with acute infections
- people suffering from a cold
- people who have recently had a severe illness such as a heart attack, lung embolism or stroke.
- people who suffer from claustrophobia - the face mask may cause them to feel uncomfortable.
If you have had a severe illness but it was a long time ago there is no reason why you should not take part in an IHHT session. Indeed, such patients are often those who are set to benefit the most from IHHT.
IHHT at Park Igls - status quo and future
Looking ahead
Dr Gartner: IHHT has been used at Park Igls for just over a year, so we don't yet have comprehensive documentation of its long-term benefits. However, more and more guests are telling us that the quality and quantity of their sleep have improved significantly after an IHHT. We can confirm that IHHT and the associated stimulation of mitochondrial exchange does indeed improve your sleep.
One wish for the future is for easier operation and more convenient handling. At the moment, staff have to check oxygen saturation and heart rates at five-minute intervals, which is very labour-intensive. The use of AI to simplify monitoring and administer therapy is certainly something we could look to achieve in the future.
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You can find more information and interesting facts about Modern Mayr Medicine and its positive effects on your health on our website.