Why do knowledgeable pilots use oxygen over 5000 feet?
You can go without food for days, water for hours, but if you are denied oxygen for only a few minutes you can’t survive. Oxygen is crucial to your system. Vision is impaired as low as 5000 feet especially at night (the FAA recommends oxygen at 5000 feet at night). All the physical processes of your body, such as circulation, assimilation, digestion, and elimination “run” on oxygen. As a result, oxygen helps your body produce energy, balance its metabolism, purify itself of wastes, and fights fatigue. Flying tired is not fun.
