Performance enhancing? No way. Diamox just holds off the nausea and other symptoms that many people experience when they ascend to high altitude more quickly than their system can take. (I suppose if you call taking acetaminophen for a headache "performance-enhancing", then you might put Diamox in the same category.)
I've used Diamox on a number of occasions, but it has never enabled me to hike any faster or hike longer. Those attributes come from prior conditioning, NOT from Diamox.
Diamox also brings along with it several annoying side-effects. One being the off-taste of carbonated drinks (soft drinks and beer), and the other is an annoying tingling in the finger tips. These side-effects are more prevalent with people taking too-high a dosage for AMS symptoms.
The dosage for its original use, glaucoma, is about 1000 mg per day, while for altitude, it can be 125 to 250 mg per day.
velocycling wrote:
> Same thing is said take Diamox and go to EBC...
Taking Diamox before going to Everest Base Camp is a good idea. It just might enable you to walk around and enjoy your trip. If you don't take it, and suffer the debilitating effects of AMS, you might need to get out of there quickly to save your life. I'll let you decide if that qualifies as "performance-enhancing."
