Hazardous levels of exposure to carbon monoxide also put workers at risk for diseases like: Those who already suffer from heart and/or breathing problems can be more severely affected by inhaling CO. Exposure-related brain damage may lead to cognitive and/or physical impairments ranging from a complete loss of consciousness to death. The long-term health effects of carbon monoxide poisoning include damage to systems that require plenty of oxygen to function. Low levels of carbon monoxide exposure may cause:Īfter inhaling high levels of CO, a person might experience symptoms like: Vigilant coworkers may recognize other, identifiable effects of CO before this point. In situations where workers breathe in low levels of CO, effects may take time to appear–although cellular damage may already be in motion.Ĭommonly, people recognize the signs of overexposure to carbon monoxide when an individual has lost consciousness. Signs and SymptomsĮarly signs of CO exposure mimic other, more common illnesses (like the flu or food poisoning) which sometimes make it harder to diagnose. The side effects of short-term and low levels of exposure, however, may be reversible. Hemoglobin’s attraction to CO is 300 times higher than its attraction to oxygen, severely limiting the body’s ability to acquire and send oxygen to organs like the brain, lungs, and heart.Ī few minutes without oxygen or with low levels of oxygen can cause long-term damage to brain cells and the heart. When carbon monoxide enters the body, it binds swiftly with hemoglobin (a red blood cell that transports oxygen through the circulatory system). Over 400 people die each year from unintentional, non-fire-related CO poisoning, and more than 24,000 are hospitalized or visit the emergency room. Additionally, contact with CO can lead to side effects over long periods of time through low doses or very rapidly, through a single incident of extreme contact. Often, workplaces are at high risk for hazardous exposure due to the use of combustion engines in enclosed, poorly ventilated spaces.Ĭarbon monoxide is commonly known as the “silent killer” because it has no detectable odor and is capable of moving through walls and ceilings. Though everyone breathes in small amounts of carbon monoxide (an odorless, colorless, and tasteless gas) in the everyday air, high concentrations of CO make it harder for the body to move oxygen around the body. Environmental and occupational exposure to carbon monoxide (CO) is the leading cause of poisoning deaths in the U.S., today.
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