Has your doctor ever recommended that you check your blood oxygen levels? Did you wonder why the level of oxygen in your blood is so important? Your body monitors the level of oxygen in your blood to ensure it is within a specific range that enables you to stay healthy. The body needs enough oxygen for every cell to function at optimum capacity. Low blood levels can affect the proper functioning of cells and hinder crucial body functions. If you have a healthy blood oxygen level, your body distributes oxygen effectively from the lungs to the cells so that you stay healthy. The level of oxygen in the blood is known as oxygen saturation.
Oxygen saturation
The amount of oxygen that your red blood cells are carrying is crucial to your health. Most times, you may not need to measure blood oxygen unless you are showing signs of an illness such as short breaths and chest pain. People with chronic diseases, especially those which affect the respiratory system, need to monitor their blood level regularly. Examples of chronic diseases include asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Your doctor will regularly monitor your blood levels. An increase in oxygen saturation is an indicator that your condition is improving.
Various ways of measuring oxygen saturation
Doctors will use several methods to measure your oxygen saturation. These include:
- Arterial Blood Gas Test (ABG)
In Arterial Blood Gas Test, the doctor draws blood from an artery and tests the level of oxygen. Arteries can be felt as they have a pulse, and they contain oxygenated blood. You may feel some pain and discomfort with this method because arteries lie much deeper in the skin than veins.
- Pulse ox
This second method is non-invasive and uses a device known as a pulse oximeter (pulse ox) to estimate your blood oxygen levels. The device sends infrared light into the capillaries of your fingers, toes, and earlobe and then measures the amount of light which is reflected off the gases. This method has a 2% chance of error. It is an easy procedure that you can perform at the comfort of your home but you need to understand how to interpret the results.
In medical terms, you may hear the level of blood saturation being referred to as SpO2 or PaO2 depending on the kind of method being used. The former is for pulse ox and the latter for ABG.
What is a healthy blood oxygen level?
A normal blood oxygen level if your lungs are healthy is between 80 and 100 mm of mercury (mm Hg). If the measurement is done using a pulse ox, the readings should be between 95 and 100%. For people which chronic respiratory diseases, what the doctor will consider a normal blood level will vary. A pulse ox level of between 88 and 92% is not uncommon for people with chronic health conditions.
The pulse ox can record lower figures if you have applied dark nail polish or if the weather is quite cold. The doctor may need to remove any nail polish and redo the test if your figures are very low.
Smokers may record inaccurately high readings on their pulse ox because of carbon monoxide build-up in the blood. An ABG test is, therefore, the best test for a smoker as it can distinguish the different types of gases in the blood.
Can you have high blood oxygen levels?
It is very uncommon to have above normal levels of blood oxygen. It may, however, happen if you are using supplemental oxygen. Watch out for high levels of blood oxygen as well, as they result in a condition known as hyperoxia. Hyperoxia, which can also be termed as oxygen toxicity, comes from exposure to increased oxygen levels at normal pressure. Symptoms of this condition include vision changes like developing myopia, disorientation, and breathing problems. Hyperoxia can also when oxygen therapy goes wrong, and cause lung injury.
Low levels of blood oxygen
A PaO2 reading which is below 80 mm Hg and a pulse ox reading below 95% is considered low if you do not have a chronic infection. The normal figures for people with chronic infection may be lower, so you may need to consult your doctor about what range is normal for you. If your blood levels are low, you have a condition that is referred to as hypoxemia. The lower the levels of oxygen in your blood, the more severe the hypoxemia will be. Hypoxemia can cause complications in your tissues and organs.
Causes of low blood oxygen
- Lung conditions
The most common cause of low oxygen saturation is lung diseases. These are diseases such as COPD, bronchitis, and pneumonia.
- Pulmonary edema
Pulmonary edema is a condition where fluids accumulate in the lungs. It can be caused by pneumonia, working out at high elevations, trauma to the chest wall, heart problems, intake of certain drugs, and ingestion of toxins. The condition is treatable with medications and supplemental oxygen. Symptoms of the disease may develop gradually or come suddenly. Sudden pulmonary edema may manifest itself in shortness of breath, suffocation, wheezing, cold skin, anxiety, coughing with frothy sputum, blue-tinged lips, and an irregular heartbeat.
The symptoms of a long-term condition include severe shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, rapid weight gain, and fatigue.
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- Asthma
Asthma is a condition characterized by chronic inflammation, which makes it difficult for you to breathe. It is caused by environmental and genetic factors. If you are asthmatic, your lungs swell and constrict, hindering proper breathing. Symptoms vary from mild to severe depending on the seriousness of the condition. Many people go undiagnosed because their symptoms are not pronounced. Early symptoms of the disease include coughing, wheezing, difficulty breathing, chest tightness, fatigue, and nasal flaring. You can also experience sighing, irritability, and anxiety. A severe condition of anemia will present itself in the form of blue or gray lips, skin, and face; mental confusion; a very high fever; extreme anxiety; and other pronounced symptoms.
- Strong pain medicines
Hypoxemia may also be caused by taking strong pain medicines which make it difficult for you to breathe. As much as opioids relieve pain, they are harmful because they depress oxygen and cause sedation, making it impossible for you to wake up and recover from oxygen deprivation.
Many people overdose on their prescription or put themselves in danger by combining these medicines with sleeping pills or alcohol. Morphine is a common death drug. Always adhere strictly to the doctor’s prescription. It causes breathing problems within the first 24 to 72 hours of intake and especially if you increase the dosage. If you are combining other medications with morphine, the risk of breathing problems shoots up and life-threatening or could even throw you into a coma.
- Cyanide poisoning
Cyanide poisoning results from exposure to cyanides which can be found in plastics, metals, smoke from fires, some plants such as apricot pits and cassava, cancer treatment, and cigarette smoke; which is the most common cause. Cyanide is a deadly poison that limits the body’s use of oxygen; causing cell death. A cyanide poisoning situation is dangerous and you need to seek medical attention immediately. Symptoms of the condition include weakness, confusion, sleepiness, coma, shortness of breath, vomiting, abdominal pain, and seizures.
Cyanide poisoning may also occur over a period of time due to the ingestion of toxic chemicals from the environment. It leads to headaches, changes in taste, vomiting, chest pain, anxiety, and abdominal pain. The skin may also turn pink or red due to oxygen deprivation.
People who work in labs and places where there is the manufacturing of plastics and the use of harsh chemicals are at most risk.
- Problems with your circulatory system
The circulatory system is responsible for collecting and transporting oxygen throughout your body. When the system is faulty, only limited amounts of oxygen reach the body cells which could be tragic.
- Anemia
Low levels of blood oxygen can be a result of anemia. Anemia is a condition where the levels of red blood cells or hemoglobin in your blood are critically low. It may be a result of your body producing fewer blood cells than needed, destroying the red blood cells faster than it produces them, and blood loss through wounds; blood donation; heavy menstruation; and bleeding from conditions such as cancer and ulcers. A slightly low level of red blood cells may not be cause for alarm. Anemic tendencies are common among pregnant women but they improve after pregnancy and recovery. When the body has a low blood count, it cannot carry the amount of oxygen needed for the functioning of body tissues.
Major causes of low blood count include cancer, certain medications such as ARVs and chemotherapy drugs, iron deficiency, and aplastic anemia. Conditions such as kidney diseases, liver cirrhosis, leukemia, multiple myeloma, myelodysplastic syndrome, and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma can result in low blood count. You may also register a low blood count if you have experienced lead poisoning.
Side effects of low blood oxygen levels
If your oxygen levels are low, you may experience shortness of breath, headache, chest pain, and a rapid heartbeat. An advanced condition of hypoxemia is where your skin and other body parts discolor, a condition known as cyanosis which causes respiratory failure and possible loss of life. Your skin, nails, and mucous membrane turn blue. You should handle cyanosis as an emergency and seek medical attention immediately.
How to prevent and treat low oxygen levels
Treatment
Depending on the condition which is causing the low levels of blood oxygen, treatments can range from oxygen therapy, an inhaler for asthma, steroid drugs to fight inflammation in the lungs, antibiotics, or a machine to help you breathe in the worst cases.
Prevention
Preventing low levels of oxygen is the way to go. Prevention methods include;
- Opening your windows to ensure you have an adequate supply of fresh air at all times.
- Increasing your water intake to 8-10 glasses in a day. You can also go for fresh vegetable juices and smoothies. Avoid sweet fruit juices such as mango and orange juices which have high sugar content.
- Eat a diet rich in greens and iron nutrients. Make friends with fresh, raw, and green vegetables and fruits as they are rich in vitamins and minerals which help to increase the uptake of oxygen in your body. Iron-rich foods improve iron deficiency and in turn, increase oxygen levels in your blood.
- Go easy on salt to increase oxygenation through the kidney and avoid overworking it which results in high blood pressure.
- Invest in house plants such as Aloe Vera which release oxygen levels in the atmosphere. There are also certain plants that absorb toxic substances from the atmosphere so that you only breathe fresh, uncontaminated air. These include areca palm, lady palm, bamboo palm, and rubber plant.
