Why does nitrogen cause you to just pass out but carbon dioxide causes you to suffocated and feel it? Is it because of the oxygen in carbon dioxide?
In: 42
Asphyxia – a condition caused by lack of oxygen causing death.
It isn’t necessarily the carbon dioxide that causes asphyxia however it does result in harm and can be potentially fatal to the body.
The body reacts to excess carbon dioxide much more readily than other gases as it is naturally occurring within the body in harmful quantities. The way the body reacts is by breathing (ventilating) more to get rid of it. This gives an
uncomfortable and breathless experience.
The relationship between amount of Carbon dioxide in the lungs and the amount the body needs to breath is illustrated with this graph:
https://images.app.goo.gl/qrfZJ9FuTeq7bDRz5
As a side note others have noted that the body does not react to low oxygen levels, this is incorrect. The body has mechanisms that ultimately result in an increased amount of breathing (ventilation) which is quite well illustrated with this graph:
https://images.app.goo.gl/TxHerSiNdLtpEs338
The likely reason for the misunderstanding is that most people don’t get to the point where they experience low levels of carbon dioxide before they experience low oxygen.
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