Thin air recently killed a Texas tourist at Mount Crested Butte, Colo., the Gunnison County coroner has confirmed.

Paul Parmeley suffered pulmonary and cerebral edemas, or filling of the lungs and brain with fluid, and died three days after arriving at the resort, according to Frank Vader, county coroner.

Parmeley told friends that he had felt sick since his arrival. Despite their urgings to go to the doctor as his condition worsened, he did not seek medical attention. By the time medical treatment was sought, Parmeley could not be saved.

The elevation of Mount Crested Butte is 9,960 feet.

Thin air was a factor in about half the natural deaths in Gunnison County last year, according to Vader. In many of the deaths he has investigated, people with pre-existing heart conditions created too much stress on their hearts when they traveled to high elevations in the county, Vader said.

Parmeley also had methadone in his system, but Vader said methadone was not a factor in his death.

The Wall Street Journal recently published a story on the problem of altitude sickness headlined "At Colorado Resorts, Ski Fever Often Comes with Case of Nausea."

Symptoms of altitude sickness are similar to the flu, and include headaches, dizziness, shortness of breath and insomnia. The sickness becomes life-threatening in about 1 percent of the cases. Patients are advised to move to a lower altitude, or take supplementary oxygen during their stay.

Ironically, Mount Crested Butte once boasted an "oxygen bar" at the base of the ski lift, where patrons could buy oxygen. The Crested Butte 02 Bar was forced to close due to regulatory prohibitions on the distribution of oxygen.

Manufactured oxygen is a prescription drug to be ordered by a physician or used by an emergency medical technician, said Shelly Maifarth of the FDA's Denver office.

To prevent high altitude sickness, Princeton University's Outdoor Action Program suggest:

If possible, don't fly or drive to high altitude. Start below 10,000 feet (3,048 meters) and walk up.

If you do fly or drive, do not over-exert yourself or move higher for the first 24 hours.

If you go above 10,000 feet (3,048 meters), only increase your altitude by 1,000 feet (305 meters) per day and for every 3,000 feet (915 meters) of elevation gained, take a rest day.

"Climb High and sleep low." This is the maxim used by climbers. You can climb more than 1,000 feet (305 meters) in a day as long as you come back down and sleep at a lower altitude.

If you begin to show symptoms of moderate altitude illness, don't go higher until symptoms decrease ("Don't go up until symptoms go down").

If symptoms increase, go down, down, down!

Keep in mind that different people will acclimatize at different rates. Make sure all of your party is properly acclimatized before going higher.

Stay properly hydrated. Acclimatization is often accompanied by fluid loss, so you need to drink lots of fluids to remain properly hydrated (at least 3-4 quarts per day). Urine output should be copious and clear.

Take it easy; don't over-exert yourself when you first get up to altitude. Light activity during the day is better than sleeping because respiration decreases during sleep, exacerbating the symptoms.

Avoid tobacco and alcohol and other depressant drugs including, barbiturates, tranquilizers, and sleeping pills. These depressants further decrease the respiratory drive during sleep resulting in a worsening of the symptoms.

Eat a high carbohydrate diet (more than 70% of your calories from carbohydrates) while at altitude.

The acclimatization process is inhibited by dehydration, over-exertion, and alcohol and other depressant drugs.