Oxygen and Carbon Dioxide Transport | Effects of Hypocapnia
The graph on the left represents normal carbon dioxide transport and normal oxygen transport, while the graph on the right side represents the most common clinical situation in the sick. It explains the mechanism of cell hypoxia due to hyperventilation with changes in arterial and venous blood gases and the oxygen and carbon dioxide partial pressure in cells.
Since hypocapnia (carbon dioxide deficiency) causes a constriction of arteries and arterioles and the suppressed Bohr effect, overbreathing (breathing more than the medical norm) reduces O2 tension in the cells of the brain, heart, kidneys, liver, and other vital organs.
Effects of hypocapnia on O2 and CO2 transport
Hence, the effects of chronic hyperventilation on oxygen transport are due to:
- a constriction of blood vessels: arteries and
arterioles (less blood and oxygen is delivered to cells and tissues)
- the inefficient Bohr effect
(less oxygen is released in cells and tissues).
Note that the real-life situation in the sick people (see the Homepage for exact numbers) can be worse due to increased chest breathing. As we discussed before, during chronic hyperventilation most people switch from diaphragmatic to chest breathing. Chest breathing reduces oxygenation of the arterial blood due to lowered oxygen supply for lower divisions of the lungs. In the meantime, the diaphragm is also deprived of CO2 and O2. This leads to spasm and chronic fatigue in the diaphragm, when a greater potion of air is inhaled using the costal (or chest) muscles.
Finally, since lower divisions of the lungs get an greater supply of the blood (due to gravity), this chest breathing effect is amplified and the oxygenation of the arterial blood is further diminished.
Therefore, there are three independent mechanisms of hypocapnia or carbon dioxide deficiency that hampers the efficiency of oxygen transport: chest breathing, vasoconstriction, and the suppressed Bohr effect.
Reference pages: Breathing norms and medical facts:
-
Breathing
norms: Parameters, graph, and description of the normal
breathing pattern
- 6 breathing myths: Myths and superstitions about breathing
and body oxygenation (prevalence: over 90%)
- Hyperventilation: Definitions of
hyperventilation: their advantages and weak points
- Hyperventilation syndrome:
Western scientific evidence about prevalence of chronic hyperventilation in patients with chronic conditions
(37 medical studies)
- Normal minute ventilation: Small and
slow
breathing at rest is enjoyed by healthy subjects (14 studies)
- Hyperventilation prevalence: Present in
over 90% of
normal people (24 medical studies)
- HV and hypoxia:
How and why deep breathing reduces oxygenation of cells and tissues of
all vital organs
- Body-oxygen test (CP test)
: How to measure your own breathing and body oxygenation (two in one) using a simple DIY test
- Body oxygen in healthy:
Results for the body-oxygen test for healthy people (27 medical
studies)
- Body oxygen in sick
: Results for the body-oxygen test for sick people (14 medical studies)
- Buteyko
Table of Health Zones: Clinical description and ranges for breathing zones:
from the critically ill (severely sick) up to super healthy people
with maximum possible body oxygenation
- Morning hyperventilation: Why people feel
worse and critically ill people are most
likely to die during early morning hours
References: pages about CO2 effect:
- Vasodilation: CO2 expands arteries and arterioles facilitating perfusion
(or blood supply) to all vital organs
- The Bohr effect:
How and why oxygen is released by red blood cells in tissues
- Cell oxygen levels: How alveolar CO2 influences
oxygen transport
- Oxygen transport: O2 transport is controlled by
vasoconstriction-vasodilation and the Bohr effects, both of which rely on CO2
- Free radical generation:
Reactive oxygen species are produced within cells due to anaerobic cell respiration caused by cell hypoxia
- Inflammatory response: Chronic inflammation
in fueled by the hypoxia-inducible factor 1, while normal breathing reduces
and eliminates inflammation
- Nerve stabilization: People remain calm due to calmative or
sedative effects of carbon dioxide in neurons or nerve cells
- Muscle relaxation: Relaxation of muscle cells
is normal at high CO2, while hypocapnia causes muscular tension, poor posture
and, sometimes, aggression and violence
- Bronchodilation: Dilation of
airways (bronchi and bronchioles) is caused by carbon dioxide, and their constriction
by hypocapnia (low CO2)
- Blood
pH: Regulation of blood pH due to breathing and regulation of other bodily fluids
- CO2: lung damage: Elevated carbon
dioxide prevents lung injury and promotes healing of lung tissues
- CO2: Topical carbon dioxide can heal skin and tissues
- Synthesis of glutamine
in the brain, CO2 fixation, and other chemical reactions
- Deep breathing myth:
Ignorant and naive people promote the idea that deep breathing and breathing
more air at rest is beneficial for health
- Breathing control: How is our
breathing regulated? Why hypocapnia makes breathing uneven, irregular and erratic.
Go back to CO2 Benefits
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