Center gives villagers respite from high-altitude stress

In the first three days of the new year, 32 villagers from rural areas of Nakarze county in Southwest China's Tibet autonomous region moved into a new healthcare center, marking the launch of Tibet's first healthcare center in an extreme high-altitude area.

From six rural villages in Puma Changthang township, they are the first batch of villagers to benefit from the project. Their average age is 45, with the eldest 74 years old, and the youngest 2.

At an average altitude of 5,300 meters above sea level, Puma Changthang is known as the "world's highest township".

With an annual average temperature of -7 C and oxygen levels less than 40 percent of those at sea level, residents experience a winter as long as nine months every year.

Due to the harsh living environment, many residents suffer from heart disease, rheumatism and other high plateau diseases, and the average life expectancy in the town is only half that of areas on the plains.

Providing a healthcare center for rural residents in extreme high-altitude areas is part of the local government's efforts to ensure people can live comfortably in such areas, said Luo Wenjin, head of the Nakarze county government.

The healthcare center is in the county's Khare township, which sits at an average altitude of 3,600 meters and has a much better climate and living environment.