Water, food and your first-aid kit
How much to drink and how to make it safe, keeping your stomach on side, and the small kit that handles most trail problems.
The short version
- 1Drink 3 to 4 litres a day at altitude, more on long climbs.
- 2Treat all stream water: boil it, use chlorine dioxide tablets, or a filter plus tablets.
- 3Pack oral rehydration salts, blister kit, painkillers and your own medicines in your daypack.
- 4Wash or sanitise hands before every meal. Most trek stomach bugs come from hands, not food.
In this guide
How much to drink
You lose a lot of water at altitude: dry air, fast breathing and hard work. Aim for 3 to 4 litres a day, including tea and soup. Pale yellow urine means you're doing fine; dark means drink more.
- Start the day with half a litre before you walk.
- Sip every 20 to 30 minutes rather than gulping at stops.
- In winter, carry water in an insulated bottle or upside down in your pack so the lid doesn't freeze.
- Fill up with warm water at camp in the morning: you'll drink more of it in the cold.
Making water safe
Mountain streams look clean but often run past villages, grazing animals and camps. Treat everything that doesn't come from your camp kitchen's boiled supply.
| Method | Handles | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Boiling | Everything | A rolling boil for a minute is enough, even at altitude. Uses fuel; ask the kitchen team |
| Chlorine dioxide tablets | Bacteria, viruses, most parasites | Light and cheap. Wait 30 minutes (4 hours for the toughest parasites, longer in icy water) |
| Filter bottle or pump | Bacteria and parasites | Most don't stop viruses. Pair with tablets near villages |
| UV pen | Everything in clear water | Needs batteries, which die in the cold. Useless in muddy water |
Food and your stomach
Appetite drops at altitude, but your body burns more. Eat at every meal even if you're not hungry, and carry snacks you actually like: nuts, dried fruit, chocolate, energy bars, chikki.
- Hand hygiene is the big one. Sanitiser before every meal and after the toilet.
- Skip raw salads and cut fruit you didn't peel yourself on the drive in.
- Diarrhoea: drink oral rehydration salts (ORS) and keep eating plain food. Tell your leader; a fever or blood means you need medical advice.
A first-aid kit that earns its weight
Your operator carries a group kit (and should carry oxygen on high treks; ask). Your personal kit covers the things you'll need fast, in your daypack:
- Your own prescription medicines, with a spare course in a different bag
- Paracetamol and ibuprofen
- Oral rehydration salts, 6 to 8 sachets
- Blister kit: hydrocolloid plasters (like Compeed), moleskin, tape, small scissors
- Antiseptic wipes, a few plasters and a crepe bandage
- Antihistamine tablets for allergies and insect bites
- Something for nausea and something for diarrhoea, after asking your doctor
- Acetazolamide (Diamox) if your doctor has prescribed it
- SPF 50 sunscreen and lip balm with SPF
This guide is general information to help you prepare, not medical advice. Talk to a doctor about your own health before a high-altitude trip, and follow your trek leader on the mountain.
Read next
- Altitude sicknessWhy the air gets thin, how to acclimatise, the warning signs of AMS, HAPE and HACE, and the one treatment that always works.
- What to packThe layering system that keeps you warm at -10°C, the right shoes, season-by-season extras, and what your operator usually provides.
- Insurance & emergenciesWhat your insurance has to cover at altitude, how rescue actually works in the Indian Himalaya, and the rules on satellite devices.