We inhale O2 and exhale CO2, so does that mean we just add carbon and exhale the same oxygen we just inhaled? Why cant we just exhale carbon?
In: Biology
No. Our cells make carbon dioxide, not carbon as a byproduct of metabolism (Carbon is a solid at room temperature, and anyway, it takes a lot of energy to create carbon dioxide from oxygen and carbon. You can just mix them up, it takes a chemical reaction).
Our lungs don’t attach carbon to the oxygen we just inhaled, they exchange fresh oxygen for carbon dioxide that was carried to our lungs via our bloodstream.
Latest Answers