Domesticated in the New World, the potato can be 
cultivated successfully in high-altitude areas; it is 
the staple crop in both the Andes and the Khumbu. Left: 
Quechua women near Cuzco apply guano to green potato 
plants, four months after planting. Below: Sherpa 
women and lowland helpers plant potatoes in a Khumbu village. 
In Nunoa and the surrounding area, 
considerable research has been carried 
out on the natural cold stress endured by 
the inhabitants, as well as the biological 
and cultural adjustments to cold stress. 
Most of this research has been directed 
by Michael A. Little of the State Uni- 
versity of New York at Binghamton, J. 
Michael Hanna of the University of 
Hawaii, and Paul T. Baker. One finding 
is that on the altiplano , clothing offers 
considerable protection against heat 
loss. 
Quechua men’s underwear consists of 
long pants and a long-sleeved shirt. Over 
these are worn homemade pants and a 
shirt, covered by a vest and jacket. Dur- 
ing early morning and late evening 
hours, when it is quite cold, men will 
wear heavy woolen ponchos and knitted 
stocking caps with earflaps. Quechua 
women wear several woolen mid-calf- 
length skirts, a blouse, a jacket, and a 
shawl. Mittens are rarely worn by either 
sex, but hands can be placed underneath 
clothing to be warmed. Normally, 
adults go barefoot or wear sandals with 
soles made from pieces of rubber tires. 
This type of clothing is remarkably ef- 
fective in protecting adults against the 
cold. In the dry season, average skin 
temperatures are consistently 90°, de- 
spite an ambient temperature that fluc- 
tuates between 21° and 68°. In the wet 
season, hands and feet undergo greater 
stress but remain at temperatures of at 
least 74°. Perhaps the greatest exposure 
to cold occurs when adults must work in 
water, for example, washing clothes or 
building channels. Under these circum- 
stances, foot and hand temperatures 
may fall below 59°. (Although it may 
cause some discomfort and reduced 
function, this temperature is not low 
enough to damage tissues in the short 
run. Of course, prolonged exposure can 
lead to a dangerous loss of internal 
heat.) 
Children five years of age and older 
wear the same sort of clothing as adults 
and are perhaps the most subject to cold 
stress. But even out of doors during the 
wet season, toe and finger temperatures 
of Quechua children remain above 68°. 
Infants are well protected. They are 
usually diapered and wear an under- 
shirt, a homespun tunic, one or more 
sweaters, and a knitted hat. Nursing and 
changing are done near a fire, and the 
infant usually plays in the sunniest area 
near the house. 
Urban houses in Nunoa are con- 
structed of adobe and covered with mud 
or plaster stucco, while rural houses are 
made with piled stone walls and 
thatched roofing. During the cold, dry 
season, nighttime temperatures inside 
adobe houses average 45°, while out- 
door temperatures are well below freez- 
ing. Rural houses offer considerably less 
protection against the wind and cold. At 
night, the average difference between 
minimum indoor and outdoor tempera- 
tures is less than seven degrees, so that 
indoor temperatures fall below freezing 
during the cold, dry season. 
During sleep, people in Nunoa pro- 
tect themselves from the cold in two 
ways. First, the family members usually 
sleep together under blankets, sharing 
body heat; and second, most people 
sleep with their clothing on. In rural 
areas during the cold, dry season, this 
type of sleeping arrangement is associ- 
ated with only slight reductions in 
adults’ body temperatures. Somewhat 
greater reductions occur in children’s 
body temperatures, but these effects are 
not great enough to be harmful. 
Despite their cultural adaptations, 
the Quechuas are more exposed to cold 
than their lowland neighbors, and there- 
fore, they differ from nonstressed low- 
landers in their biological response to 
cold. Like the Eskimos, Quechua adults 
have a slightly elevated basal metabolic 
rate, permitting them to maintain 
higher than normal internal tempera- 
tures while sustaining the peripheral 
blood flow necessary to warm their ex- 
tremities; this is probably why the skin 
temperatures of their hands and feet 
remain high enough to prevent tissue 
damage even though mittens and shoes 
are rarely worn. 
Body size and physique are also im- 
portant in determining the biological 
response to cold. Although shorter than 
people in the United States, Quechuas 
are more stockily built. Their shorter 
arms and legs reduce the skin surface 
area relative to body weight, helping to 
lower heat loss and to maintain normal 
internal body temperatures. 
In all populations, men, women, and 
children differ in their response to cold. 
Women have a larger proportion of 
body fat, which acts as insulation. Que- 
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