The TRAVELER'S JOURNAL: July twelfth, examining the perils of too much up or down.

Seasoned travelers to exotic climates generally take the time and medicine to counter maladies like malaria and hepatitis. Sometimes, however, adventurers are too impatient to protect themselves against pressure changes. Whether scaling mountain heights or scouring watery depths, invest the time to adjust to your new environment.

Remember, along with air pressure, the oxygen content of the atmosphere decreases as the elevation increases. If sea-level dwelling climbers, hikers, skiers and bikers don't take the time to get used to the lower oxygen levels, they risk getting altitude sickness when 7500 feet or higher. The symptoms, headache, fatigue, nausea and appetite loss, usually strike within 12 hours and pass in a day or two. Some victims develop life-threatening edema, as fluids collect in the lungs or around the brain. The best prevention is slow acclimatization to the altitude. Don't exert yourself the first day. Ascend slowly. Avoid depressants like alcohol and tobacco. Simple pain relievers may help; stronger treatments include ginkgo biloba a prescription drug, Diamox.

Scuba divers face a different dilemma. Since water is denser than air, if submerged divers re-surface too rapidly, their circulation system can get plugged by tiny bubbles of nitrogen that form and expand in their tissue and blood stream. Symptoms include shortness of breath, headache and excruciating pain in chest and joints. The best prevention is having the patience and air to follow divetable guidelines. The only sure treatment is pressurization in a hyperbaric chamber to let the nitrogen bubbles dissipate slowly.

Altitude illness and the bends are two health subjects covered in the latest issue of National Geographic Traveler, a supporter of our program.

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