The Consequences of Breathing Pure Oxygen: What Happens When You Inhale 100% Oxygen

When you are asked what we breath in, you would mention that humans or basically all animals breath in oxygen and breath out carbon dioxide and if we are to be sincere based on your knowledge, then you are right but what do you think would happen if you breath 100% pure oxygen hypothetically without the supervision of medical practitioners such as in the case of using a ventilator. Trust me when I say ventilators are lifesavers, and are needed in the hospital at all times. That said, let's go back to what I was saying;

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As I mentioned, if you are asked what you breath in, you would say oxygen but in reality, what you breath in is air which comprises of 71% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, 0.04% carbon dioxide, and 0.96% other gases. When we breath this air, the oxygen in the air goes to your bloodstream from the lungs because it is chemically attracted to hemoglobin which is found in the red blood cells, also oxygen can dissolve in water.

When oxygen gets into the blood, it is distributed to every part of the body where it is needed and it release energy during cellular respiration but then cellular respiration come with byproducts which are free radicals. These by-products include Superoxide anions (O2-), Hydroxyl radical (HO), and Nitric oxide (NO), and these free radicals are known as Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS).

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You must have heard that free radicals in the body is bad for our cells or any compound they come in contact with, and when they come in contact with our cells, they make them go rogue. So you might think that there are a lot of damaged cells or rogue ones as a result of free radicals in the body but this isn't since the body has antioxidant which repairs and prevent the cells from breaking down.

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When a person breaths in 100% pure oxygen, then 98% of the oxygen find its way to the hemoglobin in the bloodstream since it is inhaled, while the remaining 2% is shared by the plasma in the blood and water in the blood. Inhaling 100% pure oxygen saturates the bloodstream with oxygen, significantly elevating oxygen levels in both red blood cells and plasma. Consequently, cellular respiration accelerates, resulting in heightened production of free radicals. The body's antioxidant system becomes overwhelmed by the surplus of free radicals, leading to oxidative stress and cellular damage.

With oxygen at a high amount in the body, it would affect the body's metabolism, thereby affecting different organs in the body. These organs include the heart, the lungs, and the nervous system. The lungs first start to experience necrosis followed by the heart and the nervous system dying. Unlike oxygen, Nitrogen is very stable and so does not react in the human body. Its doesn't bind to hemoglobin, and its presence in the lungs helps it to be inflated.

While oxygen is essential for life, inhaling pure oxygen without medical supervision under normal pressure can have detrimental effects on the body. Understanding the delicate balance of gases in the air highlights the importance of maintaining equilibrium for optimal health and well-being. In hospitals, doctors need to maintain balance when giving patients pure oxygen so as to prevent complications including cases like ventilator induced pneumonia.

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Reference

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• https://www.msdmanuals.com/home/lung-and-airway-disorders/biology-of-the-lungs-and-airways/exchanging-oxygen-and-carbon-dioxide
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK430743/
• https://www.nature.com/articles/pr2009174
• https://myhealth.ucsd.edu/RelatedItems/3,90904
• https://scied.ucar.edu/learning-zone/air-quality/whats-in-the-air
• https://www.bronchiectasisandntminitiative.org/Learn-More/I-am-a-Patient-or-Caregiver/Oxygen-Therapy
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK507711/