All living organisms need oxygen to breathe. Why does a person need oxygen and what breathing is considered correct. Breath holding training: exercises

06.06.2020

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Excess oxygen

Lack of oxygenium

Causes:

Decrease in partial pressure of O2 in inhaled air;

Why do we breathe?

You probably know that breathing is necessary so that the oxygen necessary for life enters the body with the inhaled air, and when exhaling, the body releases carbon dioxide.

All living things breathe - animals, birds, and plants.

Why do living organisms need oxygen so much that life is impossible without it? And where does carbon dioxide come from in cells, from which the body needs to constantly get rid of?

The fact is that each cell of a living organism represents a small but very active biochemical production. Do you know that no production is possible without energy. All processes that occur in cells and tissues occur with the consumption of large amounts of energy.

Where does it come from?

With the food we eat - carbohydrates, fats and proteins. In cells, these substances are oxidized. Most often, a chain of transformations of complex substances leads to the formation of a universal source of energy - glucose. As a result of the oxidation of glucose, energy is released. Oxygen is precisely what is needed for oxidation. The energy that is released as a result of these reactions is stored by the cell in the form of special high-energy molecules - they, like batteries or accumulators, release energy as needed. And the end product of nutrient oxidation is water and carbon dioxide, which are removed from the body: from the cells it enters the blood, which carries carbon dioxide to the lungs, and there it is expelled out during exhalation. In one hour, a person releases from 5 to 18 liters of carbon dioxide and up to 50 grams of water through the lungs.

By the way.

High-energy molecules that are the "fuel" for bio chemical processes, are called ATP - adenosine triphosphoric acid. In humans, the lifespan of one ATP molecule is less than 1 minute. The human body synthesizes about 40 kg of ATP per day, but all of it is almost immediately spent, and practically no ATP reserve is created in the body. For normal life, it is necessary to constantly synthesize new ATP molecules. That is why, without oxygen, a living organism can live for a maximum of a few minutes.

Are there living organisms that do not need oxygen?

Each of us is familiar with the processes of anaerobic respiration! Thus, the fermentation of dough or kvass is an example of an anaerobic process carried out by yeast: they oxidize glucose to ethanol (alcohol); the process of souring milk is the result of the work of lactic acid bacteria, which carry out lactic acid fermentation - convert milk sugar lactose into lactic acid.

Why do you need oxygen breathing if oxygen-free breathing is available?

Then, aerobic oxidation is many times more effective than anaerobic oxidation. Compare: during the anaerobic breakdown of one glucose molecule, only 2 ATP molecules are formed, and as a result of the aerobic breakdown of a glucose molecule, 38 ATP molecules are formed! For complex organisms with high speed and intensity of metabolic processes, anaerobic respiration is simply not enough to maintain life - for example, an electronic toy that requires 3-4 batteries to operate simply will not turn on if only one battery is inserted into it.

Is oxygen-free respiration possible in the cells of the human body?

Certainly! The first stage of the breakdown of the glucose molecule, called glycolysis, takes place without the presence of oxygen. Glycolysis is a process common to almost all living organisms. During glycolysis, pyruvic acid (pyruvate) is formed. It is she who sets off on the path of further transformations leading to the synthesis of ATP during both oxygen and oxygen-free respiration.

Thus, ATP reserves in muscles are very small - they are only enough for 1-2 seconds of muscle work. If a muscle needs short-term but active activity, anaerobic respiration is the first to be mobilized in it - it is activated faster and provides energy for about 90 seconds of active muscle work. If the muscle works actively for more than two minutes, then aerobic respiration kicks in: with it, ATP production occurs slowly, but it provides enough energy to maintain physical activity for a long time (up to several hours).

Your comments:

They themselves make accusations about mistakes, even having no idea that what they are saying is correct.

ATP water. apparently people didn’t study much in school

Why is natural oxygen needed?

What is oxygen for?

Increased mental performance;

Increasing the body's resistance to stress and reducing nervous stress;

Maintaining a normal level of oxygen in the blood, thereby improving the nutrition of skin cells and organs;

The functioning of internal organs is normalized, metabolism is accelerated;

Weight loss - oxygen promotes active breakdown of fats;

Normalization of sleep - due to the saturation of cells with oxygen, the body relaxes, sleep becomes deeper and lasts longer;

Solving the problem of hypoxia (i.e. lack of oxygen).

Natural oxygen, according to scientists and doctors, is quite capable of coping with these tasks, but, unfortunately, in urban conditions, problems arise with a sufficient amount of oxygen.

Scientists have determined that 200 years ago a person received up to 40% of natural oxygen from the air, and today this figure has decreased by 2 times - to 21%.

Why do living organisms need oxygen?

Animals can survive without food for several weeks, without water for several days. But without oxygen they die within minutes.

Oxygen is a chemical element, and one of the most common on earth. It is found all around us, making up about one-fifth of the air (and almost the rest is nitrogen).

Oxygen combines with almost all other elements. In living organisms it combines with hydrogen, carbon and other substances, forming human body approximately two-thirds of the total weight.

At normal temperatures, oxygen reacts with other elements very slowly, forming new substances called oxides. This process is called an oxidation reaction.

Oxidation occurs constantly in living organisms. Food is the fuel of living cells. When food is oxidized, energy is released that the body uses to move and for its own growth. The slow oxidation that occurs in living beings is often called internal respiration.

A person inhales oxygen through the lungs. From the lungs it enters the circulatory system and is carried throughout the body. By breathing air, we supply the cells of our body with oxygen for their internal respiration. Thus, we need oxygen to obtain energy, thanks to which the body can function.

People with breathing problems are often placed in oxygen chambers, where the patient breathes air that is forty to sixty percent oxygen, and he does not have to expend much energy to obtain the amount of oxygen he needs.

Although oxygen is constantly taken from the air by living beings for breathing, its reserves, however, never run out. Plants release it during their nutrition, thereby replenishing our oxygen supplies.

Why does the body need oxygen?

Oxygen- one of the most common elements not only in nature, but also in the composition of the human body.

The special properties of oxygen are: chemical element made it, during the evolution of living beings, a necessary partner in the fundamental processes of life. The electronic configuration of the oxygen molecule is such that it has unpaired electrons, which are highly reactive. Possessing therefore high oxidizing properties, the oxygen molecule is used in biological systems as a kind of trap for electrons, the energy of which is extinguished when they are associated with oxygen in a water molecule.

There is no doubt that oxygen is “at home” for biological processes as an electron acceptor. The solubility of oxygen in both the aqueous and lipid phases is also very useful for an organism whose cells (especially biological membranes) are built from physically and chemically diverse materials. This allows it to diffuse relatively easily to any structural formations of cells and participate in oxidative reactions. True, oxygen is several times more soluble in fats than in an aquatic environment, and this is taken into account when using oxygen as a therapeutic agent.

Each cell of our body requires uninterrupted supply of oxygen, where it is used in various metabolic reactions. In order to deliver and sort it into cells, you need a fairly powerful transport apparatus.

Under normal conditions, the cells of the body need to supply about 200-250 ml of oxygen every minute. It is easy to calculate that the need for it per day is considerable (about 300 liters). With hard work, this need increases tenfold.

The diffusion of oxygen from the pulmonary alveoli into the blood occurs due to the alveolar-capillary difference (gradient) of oxygen tension, which when breathing normal air is: 104 (pO 2 in the alveoli) - 45 (pO 2 in the pulmonary capillaries) = 59 mm Hg. Art.

Alveolar air (with an average lung capacity of 6 liters) contains no more than 850 ml of oxygen, and this alveolar reserve can supply the body with oxygen for only 4 minutes, given that the body's average oxygen requirement in normal conditions is approximately 200 ml per minute.

It is estimated that if molecular oxygen simply dissolved in blood plasma (and it dissolves poorly in it - 0.3 ml in 100 ml of blood), then in order to ensure the cells’ normal need for it, it is necessary to increase the speed of vascular blood flow to 180 liters per minute. In fact, blood moves at a speed of only 5 liters per minute. Oxygen delivery to tissues is carried out by a wonderful substance - hemoglobin.

Hemoglobin contains 96% protein (globin) and 4% non-protein component (heme). Hemoglobin, like an octopus, captures oxygen with its four tentacles. The role of “tentacles” that specifically grasp oxygen molecules in the arterial blood of the lungs is played by heme, or rather the divalent iron atom located in its center. Iron is “attached” inside the porphyrin ring using four bonds. This complex of iron with porphyrin is called protoheme or simply heme. The other two iron bonds are directed perpendicular to the plane of the porphyrin ring. One of them goes to the protein subunit (globin), and the other is free, it directly catches molecular oxygen.

The polypeptide chains of hemoglobin are arranged in space in such a way that their configuration approaches a spherical one. Each of the four globules has a “pocket” in which heme is placed. Each heme is capable of capturing one oxygen molecule. A hemoglobin molecule can bind a maximum of four oxygen molecules.

How does hemoglobin “work”?

Observations of the respiratory cycle of the “molecular lung” (as the famous English scientist M. Perutz called hemoglobin) reveal the amazing features of this pigment protein. It turns out that all four gems work in concert, rather than independently. Each of the gems is, as it were, informed about whether its partner has added oxygen or not. In deoxyhemoglobin, all the “tentacles” (iron atoms) protrude from the plane of the porphyrin ring and are ready to bind an oxygen molecule. Having caught an oxygen molecule, iron is drawn inside the porphyrin ring. The first oxygen molecule is the most difficult to attach, and each subsequent one gets better and easier. In other words, hemoglobin acts according to the proverb “appetite comes with eating.” The addition of oxygen even changes the properties of hemoglobin: it becomes a stronger acid. This fact has great importance in the transport of oxygen and carbon dioxide.

Having become saturated with oxygen in the lungs, hemoglobin in the red blood cells carries it through the bloodstream to the cells and tissues of the body. However, before saturating hemoglobin, oxygen must dissolve in the blood plasma and pass through the red blood cell membrane. In practice, especially when using oxygen therapy, it is important for a doctor to take into account the potential capabilities of erythrocyte hemoglobin to retain and deliver oxygen.

One gram of hemoglobin under normal conditions can bind 1.34 ml of oxygen. Reasoning further, we can calculate that with an average hemoglobin content in the blood of 14-16 ml%, 100 ml of blood binds 18-21 ml of oxygen. If we take into account the blood volume, which averages about 4.5 liters in men and 4 liters in women, then the maximum binding activity of erythrocyte hemoglobin is about 750-900 ml of oxygen. Of course, this is only possible if all the hemoglobin is saturated with oxygen.

When breathing atmospheric air hemoglobin is not fully saturated - 95-97%. You can saturate it by using pure oxygen for breathing. It is enough to increase its content in the inhaled air to 35% (instead of the usual 24%). In this case, the oxygen capacity will be maximum (equal to 21 ml O 2 per 100 ml of blood). Oxygen will no longer be able to bind due to the lack of free hemoglobin.

A small amount of oxygen remains dissolved in the blood (0.3 ml per 100 ml of blood) and is transferred in this form to the tissues. Under natural conditions, the needs of tissues are satisfied by oxygen bound to hemoglobin, because oxygen dissolved in plasma is an insignificant amount - only 0.3 ml in 100 ml of blood. This leads to the conclusion: if the body needs oxygen, then it cannot live without hemoglobin.

During its life (it is approximately 120 days), the red blood cell does a tremendous job, transferring about a billion oxygen molecules from the lungs to the tissues. However, hemoglobin has interesting feature: it does not always add oxygen with the same greed, just as it does not give it to the surrounding cells with the same willingness. This behavior of hemoglobin is determined by its spatial structure and can be regulated by both internal and external factors.

The process of saturation of hemoglobin with oxygen in the lungs (or dissociation of hemoglobin in cells) is described by an S-shaped curve. Thanks to this dependence, a normal supply of oxygen to cells is possible even with small differences in the blood (from 98 to 40 mm Hg).

The position of the S-curve is not constant, and changes in it indicate important changes in biological properties hemoglobin. If the curve shifts to the left and its bend decreases, then this indicates an increase in the affinity of hemoglobin for oxygen and a decrease in the reverse process - the dissociation of oxyhemoglobin. On the contrary, a shift of this curve to the right (and an increase in the bend) indicates the exact opposite picture - a decrease in the affinity of hemoglobin for oxygen and a better release of it to tissues. It is clear that shifting the curve to the left is advisable to capture oxygen in the lungs, and to the right to release it to the tissues.

The dissociation curve of oxyhemoglobin changes depending on the pH of the environment and temperature. The lower the pH (shift to the acidic side) and the higher the temperature, the worse oxygen is captured by hemoglobin, but the better it is given to tissues during the dissociation of oxyhemoglobin. Hence the conclusion: in a hot atmosphere, oxygen saturation of the blood occurs ineffectively, but with an increase in body temperature, the unloading of oxyhemoglobin from oxygen is very active.

Red blood cells also have their own regulatory devices. It is 2,3-diphosphoglyceric acid, formed during the breakdown of glucose. The “mood” of hemoglobin in relation to oxygen also depends on this substance. When 2,3-diphosphoglyceric acid accumulates in red blood cells, it reduces the affinity of hemoglobin for oxygen and promotes its release to tissues. If there is not enough of it, the picture is the opposite.

Interesting events also occur in capillaries. At the arterial end of the capillary, oxygen diffusion occurs perpendicular to the movement of blood (from the blood into the cell). The movement occurs in the direction of the difference in partial pressures of oxygen, i.e., into the cells.

Cells give preference to physically dissolved oxygen, and it is used first. At the same time, oxyhemoglobin is unloaded from its burden. The more intensely an organ works, the more oxygen it requires. When oxygen is released, the hemoglobin tentacles are released. Due to the absorption of oxygen by tissues, the content of oxyhemoglobin in venous blood drops from 97 to 65-75%.

The unloading of oxyhemoglobin simultaneously promotes the transport of carbon dioxide. The latter, formed in tissues as the final product of combustion of carbon-containing substances, enters the blood and can cause a significant decrease in the pH of the environment (acidification), which is incompatible with life. In fact, the pH of arterial and venous blood can fluctuate within an extremely narrow range (no more than 0.1), and for this it is necessary to neutralize carbon dioxide and remove it from the tissues to the lungs.

It is interesting that the accumulation of carbon dioxide in the capillaries and a slight decrease in the pH of the environment just contribute to the release of oxygen by oxyhemoglobin (the dissociation curve shifts to the right, and the S-shaped bend increases). Hemoglobin, which plays the role of the blood buffer system itself, neutralizes carbon dioxide. In this case, bicarbonates are formed. Some of the carbon dioxide is bound by hemoglobin itself (resulting in the formation of carbhemoglobin). It is estimated that hemoglobin is directly or indirectly involved in the transport of up to 90% of carbon dioxide from tissues to the lungs. In the lungs, reverse processes occur, because oxygenation of hemoglobin leads to an increase in its acidic properties and release into environment hydrogen ions. The latter, combining with bicarbonates, form carbonic acid, which is broken down by the enzyme carbonic anhydrase into carbon dioxide and water. Carbon dioxide is released by the lungs, and oxyhemoglobin, binding cations (in exchange for split-off hydrogen ions), moves to the capillaries of peripheral tissues. Such a close connection between the acts of supplying tissues with oxygen and removing carbon dioxide from tissues to the lungs reminds us that when using oxygen for medicinal purposes, we should not forget about another function of hemoglobin - to free the body from excess carbon dioxide.

The arterial-venous difference or oxygen pressure difference along the capillary (from the arterial to the venous end) gives an idea of the oxygen demand of tissues. The length of the capillary travel of oxyhemoglobin varies in different organs (and their oxygen needs are not the same). Therefore, for example, oxygen tension in the brain drops less than in the myocardium.

Here, however, it is necessary to make a reservation and recall that the myocardium and other muscle tissues are in special conditions. Muscle cells have an active system for capturing oxygen from the flowing blood. This function is performed by myoglobin, which has the same structure and works on the same principle as hemoglobin. Only myoglobin has one protein chain (and not four, like hemoglobin) and, accordingly, one heme. Myoglobin is like a quarter of hemoglobin and captures only one molecule of oxygen.

The unique structure of myoglobin, which is limited only to the tertiary level of organization of its protein molecule, is associated with interaction with oxygen. Myoglobin binds oxygen five times faster than hemoglobin (has a high affinity for oxygen). The myoglobin saturation (or oxymyoglobin dissociation) curve with oxygen has the shape of a hyperbola rather than an S-shape. This makes great biological sense, since myoglobin, located deep in muscle tissue (where the partial pressure of oxygen is low), greedily grabs oxygen even under conditions of low tension. A kind of oxygen reserve is created, which is spent, if necessary, on the formation of energy in the mitochondria. For example, in the heart muscle, where there is a lot of myoglobin, during diastole a reserve of oxygen is formed in the cells in the form of oxymyoglobin, which during systole satisfies the needs of muscle tissue.

Apparently constant mechanical work muscle organs required additional devices for catching and reserving oxygen. Nature created it in the form of myoglobin. It is possible that non-muscle cells also have some as yet unknown mechanism for capturing oxygen from the blood.

In general, the usefulness of the work of red blood cell hemoglobin is determined by how much it was able to carry to the cell and transfer oxygen molecules to it and remove the carbon dioxide that accumulates in the tissue capillaries. Unfortunately, this worker sometimes does not work at full capacity and through no fault of his own: the release of oxygen from oxyhemoglobin in the capillary depends on the ability of biochemical reactions in cells to consume oxygen. If little oxygen is consumed, then it seems to “stagnate” and, due to its low solubility in a liquid medium, no longer comes from the arterial bed. Doctors observe a decrease in the arteriovenous oxygen difference. It turns out that hemoglobin uselessly carries some of the oxygen, and besides, it carries less carbon dioxide. The situation is not pleasant.

Knowledge of the operating patterns of the oxygen transport system in natural conditions allows the doctor to draw a number of useful conclusions for the correct use of oxygen therapy. It goes without saying that it is necessary to use, together with oxygen, agents that stimulate zytropoiesis, increase blood flow in the affected body and help the use of oxygen in the tissues of the body.

At the same time, it is necessary to clearly know for what purposes oxygen is spent in cells, ensuring their normal existence?

On its way to its place of participation in metabolic reactions inside cells, oxygen overcomes a lot of structural formations. The most important of them are biological membranes.

Every cell has a plasma (or outer) membrane and a bizarre variety of other membrane structures that bound subcellular particles (organelles). Membranes are not just partitions, but formations that perform special functions (transport, breakdown and synthesis of substances, energy production, etc.), which are determined by their organization and the composition of the biomolecules included in them. Despite the variability in membrane shapes and sizes, they consist predominantly of proteins and lipids. Other substances also found in membranes (for example, carbohydrates) are connected through chemical bonds to either lipids or proteins.

We will not dwell on the details of the organization of protein-lipid molecules in membranes. It is important to note that all models of the structure of biomembranes (“sandwich”, “mosaic”, etc.) assume the presence in the membranes of a bimolecular lipid film held together by protein molecules.

The lipid layer of the membrane is a liquid film that is in constant motion. Oxygen, due to its good solubility in fats, passes through the double lipid layer of membranes and enters the cells. Some of the oxygen is transferred to internal environment cells through transporters such as myoglobin. Oxygen is believed to be in a soluble state in the cell. Probably, it dissolves more in lipid formations, and less in hydrophilic ones. Let us remember that the structure of oxygen perfectly meets the criteria of an oxidizing agent used as an electron trap. It is known that the main concentration of oxidative reactions occurs in special organelles, mitochondria. The figurative comparisons that biochemists gave to mitochondria speak about the purpose of these small (0.5 to 2 microns in size) particles. They are called both “energy stations” and “power stations” of the cell, thereby emphasizing their leading role in the formation of energy-rich compounds.

It’s probably worth making a small digression here. As you know, one of the fundamental characteristics of living things is the efficient extraction of energy. The human body uses external sources of energy - nutrients (carbohydrates, lipids and proteins), which are crushed into smaller pieces (monomers) with the help of hydrolytic enzymes of the gastrointestinal tract. The latter are absorbed and delivered to the cells. Only those substances that contain hydrogen, which has a large supply of free energy, have energy value. The main task of the cell, or rather the enzymes contained in it, is to process substrates in such a way as to remove hydrogen from them.

Almost all enzyme systems that perform a similar role are localized in mitochondria. Here, the glucose fragment (pyruvic acid), fatty acids and carbon skeletons of amino acids are oxidized. After final processing, the remaining hydrogen is “stripped off” from these substances.

Hydrogen, which is separated from combustible substances with the help of special enzymes (dehydrogenases), is not in free form, but in connection with special carriers - coenzymes. They are derivatives of nicotinamide (vitamin PP) - NAD (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide), NADP (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate) and derivatives of riboflavin (vitamin B 2) - FMN (flavin mononucleotide) and FAD (flavin adenine dinucleotide).

Hydrogen does not burn immediately, but gradually, in portions. Otherwise, the cell could not use its energy, because when hydrogen interacts with oxygen, an explosion would occur, which is easily demonstrated in laboratory experiments. In order for hydrogen to release the energy contained in it in parts, there is a chain of electron and proton carriers in the inner membrane of mitochondria, otherwise called the respiratory chain. At a certain section of this chain, the paths of electrons and protons diverge; electrons jump through cytochromes (which, like hemoglobin, consist of protein and heme), and protons escape into the environment. At the end point of the respiratory chain, where cytochrome oxidase is located, electrons “slip” onto oxygen. In this case, the energy of the electrons is completely extinguished, and oxygen, binding protons, is reduced to a water molecule. Water no longer has energy value for the body.

The energy given off by electrons jumping along the respiratory chain is converted into the energy of chemical bonds of adenosine triphosphate - ATP, which serves as the main energy accumulator in living organisms. Since two acts are combined here: oxidation and the formation of energy-rich phosphate bonds (present in ATP), the process of energy formation in the respiratory chain is called oxidative phosphorylation.

How does the combination of the movement of electrons along the respiratory chain and the capture of energy during this movement occur? It's not entirely clear yet. Meanwhile, the action of biological energy converters would make it possible to solve many issues related to the salvation of body cells affected by a pathological process, which, as a rule, experience energy starvation. According to experts, revealing the secrets of the mechanism of energy formation in living beings will lead to the creation of more technically promising energy generators.

These are perspectives. For now, it is known that the capture of electron energy occurs in three sections of the respiratory chain and, therefore, the combustion of two hydrogen atoms produces three ATP molecules. The efficiency of such an energy transformer is close to 50%. Considering that the share of energy supplied to the cell during the oxidation of hydrogen in the respiratory chain is at least 70-90%, the colorful comparisons that were awarded to mitochondria become clear.

ATP energy is used in a variety of processes: for assembly complex structures(for example, proteins, fats, carbohydrates, nucleic acids) from building proteins, performing mechanical activities (muscle contractions), electrical work(the emergence and propagation of nerve impulses), transport and accumulation of substances inside cells, etc. In short, life without energy is impossible, and as soon as there is a sharp shortage of it, living beings die.

Let us return to the question of the place of oxygen in energy generation. At first glance, the direct participation of oxygen in this vital important process. It would probably be appropriate to compare the combustion of hydrogen (and the resulting formation of energy) with a production line, although the respiratory chain is a line not for assembling, but for “disassembling” matter.

At the origin of the respiratory chain is hydrogen. From it, the flow of electrons rushes to the final destination - oxygen. In the absence of oxygen or its shortage, the production line either stops or does not work at full capacity, because there is no one to unload it, or the efficiency of unloading is limited. No flow of electrons - no energy. According to the apt definition of the outstanding biochemist A. Szent-Gyorgyi, life is controlled by the flow of electrons, the movement of which is set by an external source of energy - the Sun. It is tempting to continue this thought and add that since life is controlled by the flow of electrons, then oxygen maintains the continuity of this flow

Is it possible to replace oxygen with another electron acceptor, unload the respiratory chain and restore energy production? In principle it is possible. This is easily demonstrated in laboratory experiments. For the body, selecting an electron acceptor such as oxygen so that it is easily transported, penetrates all cells and participates in redox reactions is still an incomprehensible task.

So, oxygen, while maintaining the continuity of the flow of electrons in the respiratory chain, under normal conditions contributes to the constant formation of energy from substances entering the mitochondria.

Of course, the situation presented above is somewhat simplified, and we did this in order to more clearly show the role of oxygen in the regulation of energy processes. The effectiveness of such regulation is determined by the operation of the apparatus for transforming the energy of moving electrons (electric current) into the chemical energy of ATP bonds. If nutrients are present even in the presence of oxygen. burn in the mitochondria “in vain”, the thermal energy released in this case is useless for the body, and energy starvation may occur with all the ensuing consequences. However, such extreme cases of impaired phosphorylation during electron transfer in tissue mitochondria are hardly possible and have not been encountered in practice.

Much more frequent are cases of dysregulation of energy production associated with insufficient oxygen supply to the cells. Does this mean immediate death? It turns out not. Evolution decided wisely, leaving a certain reserve of energy strength for human tissues. It is provided by an oxygen-free (anaerobic) pathway for the formation of energy from carbohydrates. Its efficiency, however, is relatively low, since the oxidation of the same nutrients in the presence of oxygen provides 15-18 times more energy than without it. However, in critical situations, body tissues remain viable precisely due to anaerobic energy production (through glycolysis and glycogenolysis).

This is a small digression that talks about the potential for the formation of energy and the existence of an organism without oxygen, further evidence that oxygen is the most important regulator of life processes and that existence is impossible without it.

However, no less important is the participation of oxygen not only in energy, but also in plastic processes. This aspect of oxygen was pointed out back in 1897 by our outstanding compatriot A. N. Bach and the German scientist K. Engler, who developed the position “on the slow oxidation of substances with activated oxygen.” For a long time, these provisions remained in oblivion due to too much interest of researchers in the problem of the participation of oxygen in energy reactions. Only in the 60s of our century the question of the role of oxygen in the oxidation of many natural and foreign compounds was again raised. As it turned out, this process has nothing to do with the generation of energy.

The main organ that uses oxygen to introduce it into the molecule of the oxidized substance is the liver. In liver cells, many foreign compounds are neutralized in this way. And if the liver is rightly called a laboratory for the neutralization of drugs and poisons, then oxygen in this process is given a very honorable (if not dominant) place.

Briefly about the localization and design of the oxygen consumption apparatus for plastic purposes. In the membranes of the endoplasmic reticulum, which penetrates the cytoplasm of liver cells, there is a short electron transport chain. It differs from the long one (with a large number carriers) of the respiratory chain. The source of electrons and protons in this chain is reduced NADP, which is formed in the cytoplasm, for example, during the oxidation of glucose in the pentose phosphate cycle (hence glucose can be called a full partner in the detoxification of substances). Electrons and protons are transferred to a special protein containing flavin (FAD) and from it to the final link - a special cytochrome called cytochrome P-450. Like hemoglobin and mitochondrial cytochromes, it is a heme-containing protein. Its function is dual: it binds the oxidized substance and participates in the activation of oxygen. The end result is like this complex function cytochrome P-450 is expressed in the fact that one oxygen atom enters the molecule of the oxidized substance, the second - into the water molecule. The differences between the final acts of oxygen consumption during the formation of energy in mitochondria and during the oxidation of substances in the endoplasmic reticulum are obvious. In the first case, oxygen is used to form water, and in the second - to form both water and an oxidized substrate. The proportion of oxygen consumed in the body for plastic purposes can be 10-30% (depending on the conditions for the favorable occurrence of these reactions).

Raising the question (even purely theoretically) about the possibility of replacing oxygen with other elements is pointless. Considering that this path of oxygen utilization is also necessary for the exchange of essential natural compounds- cholesterol, bile acids, steroid hormones - it is easy to understand how far the functions of oxygen extend. It turns out that it regulates the formation of a number of important endogenous compounds and the detoxification of foreign substances (or, as they are now called, xenobiotics).

It should, however, be noted that the enzymatic system of the endoplasmic reticulum, which uses oxygen to oxidize xenobiotics, has some costs, which are as follows. Sometimes, when oxygen is introduced into a substance, a more toxic compound is formed than the original one. In such cases, oxygen acts as an accomplice in poisoning the body with harmless compounds. Such costs take a serious turn, for example, when carcinogens are formed from procarcinogens with the participation of oxygen. In particular, the well-known component of tobacco smoke, benzopyrene, which was considered a carcinogen, actually acquires these properties when oxidized in the body to form oxybenzpyrene.

The above facts force us to pay close attention to those enzymatic processes in which oxygen is used as a building material. In some cases, it is necessary to develop preventive measures against this method of oxygen consumption. This task is very difficult, but it is necessary to look for approaches to it in order to use various techniques to direct the regulating potencies of oxygen in the direction necessary for the body.

The latter is especially important in the case of the use of oxygen in such an “uncontrolled” process as peroxide (or free radical) oxidation of unsaturated fatty acids. Unsaturated fatty acids are part of various lipids in biological membranes. The architecture of membranes, their permeability and the functions of the enzymatic proteins included in the membranes are largely determined by the ratio of various lipids. Lipid peroxidation occurs either with the help of enzymes or without them. The second option is no different from free radical oxidation of lipids in conventional chemical systems and requires the presence of ascorbic acid. The participation of oxygen in lipid peroxidation, of course, is not the most The best way applications of its valuable biological qualities. The free radical nature of this process, which can be initiated by divalent iron (the center of radical formation), allows it to quickly lead to the disintegration of the lipid backbone of membranes and, consequently, to cell death.

Such a catastrophe does not occur in natural conditions, however. The cells contain natural antioxidants (vitamin E, selenium, some hormones), which break the chain of lipid peroxidation, preventing the formation free radicals. Nevertheless, the use of oxygen in lipid peroxidation, according to some researchers, also has positive sides. Under biological conditions, lipid peroxidation is necessary for membrane self-renewal, since lipid peroxides are more water-soluble compounds and are more easily released from the membrane. They are replaced by new, hydrophobic lipid molecules. Only the excessiveness of this process leads to the collapse of membranes and pathological changes in the body.

It's time to take stock. So, oxygen is the most important regulator of vital processes, used by the cells of the body as a necessary component for the formation of energy in the respiratory chain of mitochondria. The oxygen requirements of these processes are met unequally and depend on many conditions (on the power of the enzymatic system, the abundance in the substrate and the availability of oxygen itself), but still the lion's share of oxygen is spent on energy processes. Hence, the “living wage” and the functions of individual tissues and organs during an acute lack of oxygen are determined by endogenous oxygen reserves and the power of the oxygen-free pathway of energy production.

However, it is no less important to supply oxygen to other plastic processes, although a smaller part of it is consumed for this. In addition to a number of necessary natural syntheses (cholesterol, bile acids, prostaglandins, steroid hormones, biologically active products of amino acid metabolism), the presence of oxygen is especially necessary for the neutralization of drugs and poisons. In case of poisoning by foreign substances, one can perhaps assume that oxygen is of greater vital importance for plastic than for energy purposes. In case of intoxication, this side of the action is precisely practical use. And only in one case does the doctor have to think about how to put a barrier to oxygen consumption in the cells. It's about about the inhibition of oxygen use in lipid peroxidation.

As we can see, knowledge of the characteristics of the delivery and routes of oxygen consumption in the body is the key to unraveling the disorders that arise during various types of hypoxic conditions, and to the correct tactics for the therapeutic use of oxygen in the clinic.

Zooengineering Faculty of Moscow Agricultural Academy. Unofficial site

Why is oxygen needed in the blood?

For normal functioning of the body, it is necessary that the blood is fully supplied with oxygen. Why is this so important?

In the blood flowing from the lungs, almost all the oxygen is chemically bound to hemoglobin rather than dissolved in the blood plasma. The presence of the respiratory pigment - hemoglobin in the blood allows it to transfer a significant amount of gases with a small volume of its own liquid. In addition, the implementation of chemical processes of binding and release of gases occurs without a sharp change in the physicochemical properties of the blood (concentration of hydrogen ions and osmotic pressure).

The oxygen capacity of the blood is determined by the amount of oxygen that hemoglobin can bind. The reaction between oxygen and hemoglobin is reversible. When hemoglobin is bound to oxygen, it becomes oxyhemoglobin. At altitudes up to 2000 m above sea level, arterial blood is 96–98% saturated with oxygen. During muscle rest, the oxygen content in the venous blood flowing to the lungs is 65–75% of the content that is in the arterial blood. With intense muscular work, this difference increases.

When oxyhemoglobin is converted into hemoglobin, the color of the blood changes: from scarlet-red it becomes dark purple and vice versa. The less oxyhemoglobin, the darker the blood. And when there is very little of it, the mucous membranes acquire a grayish-bluish color.

Most important reason changes in the blood reaction to the alkaline side is the content of carbon dioxide in it, which, in turn, depends on the presence of carbon dioxide in the blood. Therefore, the more carbon dioxide in the blood, the more carbon dioxide, and therefore, the stronger the shift in the acid-base balance of the blood to the acidic side, which better contributes to saturating the blood with oxygen and facilitating its release to the tissues. At the same time, carbon dioxide and its concentration in the blood most strongly of all the above factors influence the saturation of oxygen in the blood and its release to tissues. But muscle work especially strongly affects blood pressure, or increased activity organ, leading to an increase in temperature, significant formation of carbon dioxide, naturally, to a greater shift to the acidic side, and a decrease in oxygen tension. It is in these cases that the greatest oxygen saturation of the blood and the entire body as a whole occurs. The level of oxygen saturation in the blood is an individual constant of a person, depending on many factors, the main ones of which are the total surface of the alveolar membranes, the thickness and properties of the membrane itself, the quality of hemoglobin, and the mental state of the person. Let's explore these concepts in more detail.

1. The total surface of the alveolar membranes, through which gases diffuse, varies from 30 square meters when exhaling up to 100 with a deep breath.

2. The thickness and properties of the alveolar membrane depend on the presence of mucus on it, secreted from the body through the lungs, and the properties of the membrane itself depend on its elasticity, which, alas, is lost with age and is determined by how a person eats.

3. Although the hemin (iron-containing) groups in hemoglobin are the same for everyone, the globin (protein) groups are different, which affects the ability of hemoglobin to bind oxygen. Hemoglobin has the greatest binding ability during intrauterine life. Further, this property is lost if it is not specifically trained.

4. Due to the fact that there are nerve endings in the walls of the alveoli, various nerve impulses caused by emotions, etc., can significantly affect the permeability of the alveolar membranes. For example, when a person is depressed, he breathes heavily, and when he is cheerful, the air itself flows into the lungs.

Therefore, the level of oxygen saturation in the blood is different for each person and depends on age, type of breathing, cleanliness of the body and emotional stability of the person. And even depending on the above factors in the same person, it fluctuates significantly, amounting to 25–65 mm of oxygen per minute.

The exchange of oxygen between blood and tissues is similar to the exchange between alveolar air and blood. Since there is a continuous consumption of oxygen in the tissues, its tension drops. As a result, oxygen passes from the tissue fluid into the cells, where it is consumed. Oxygen-depleted tissue fluid, in contact with the wall of the capillary containing blood, leads to the diffusion of oxygen from the blood into the tissue fluid. The higher the tissue metabolism, the lower the oxygen tension in the tissue. And the greater this difference (between blood and tissue), the large quantity oxygen can enter tissues from the blood at the same oxygen tension in capillary blood.

The process of carbon dioxide removal resembles the reverse process of oxygen absorption. Formed in tissues during oxidative processes carbon dioxide diffuses into the interstitial fluid, where its tension is lower, and from there it diffuses through the capillary wall into the blood, where its tension is even lower than in the interstitial fluid.

Passing through the walls of tissue capillaries, carbon dioxide partly directly dissolves in the blood plasma as a gas that is highly soluble in water, and partly binds with various bases to form bicarbonates. These salts are then decomposed in the pulmonary capillaries, releasing free carbon dioxide, which in turn is rapidly broken down by the enzyme carbonic anhydrase into water and carbon dioxide. Further, due to the difference in the partial pressure of carbon dioxide between the alveolar air and its content in the blood, it passes into the lungs, from where it is expelled. The main amount of carbon dioxide is transferred with the participation of hemoglobin, which, after reacting with carbon dioxide, forms bicarbonates, and only a small part of the carbon dioxide is transferred by plasma.

It was previously stated that the main factor regulating breathing is the concentration of carbon dioxide in the blood. An increase in CO 2 in the blood flowing to the brain increases the excitability of both the respiratory and pneumotoxic centers. An increase in the activity of the first of them leads to increased contractions of the respiratory muscles, and the second leads to increased breathing. When the CO 2 content returns to normal, stimulation of these centers stops and the frequency and depth of breathing return to normal levels. This mechanism also works in the opposite direction. If a person voluntarily takes a series of deep breaths and exhalations, the CO 2 content in the alveolar air and blood will decrease so much that after he stops breathing deeply, respiratory movements will stop altogether until the level of CO 2 in the blood reaches normal again. Therefore, the body, striving for balance, maintains the partial pressure of CO 2 at a constant level already in the alveolar air.

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Oxygen- one of the most common elements not only in nature, but also in the composition of the human body.

The special properties of oxygen as a chemical element have made it, during the evolution of living beings, a necessary partner in the fundamental processes of life. The electronic configuration of the oxygen molecule is such that it has unpaired electrons, which are highly reactive. Possessing therefore high oxidizing properties, the oxygen molecule is used in biological systems as a kind of trap for electrons, the energy of which is extinguished when they are associated with oxygen in a water molecule.

It has been calculated that if molecular oxygen were simply dissolved in blood plasma (and it dissolves poorly in it - 0.3 ml in 100 ml of blood), then in order to ensure the cells’ normal need for it, it is necessary to increase the speed of vascular blood flow to 180 l in a minute. In fact, blood moves at a speed of only 5 liters per minute. Oxygen delivery to tissues is carried out by a wonderful substance - hemoglobin.

How does hemoglobin “work”?

Observations of the respiratory cycle of the “molecular lung” (as the famous English scientist M. Perutz called hemoglobin) reveal the amazing features of this pigment protein. It turns out that all four gems work in concert, rather than independently. Each of the gems is, as it were, informed about whether its partner has added oxygen or not. In deoxyhemoglobin, all the “tentacles” (iron atoms) protrude from the plane of the porphyrin ring and are ready to bind an oxygen molecule. Having caught an oxygen molecule, iron is drawn inside the porphyrin ring. The first oxygen molecule is the most difficult to attach, and each subsequent one gets better and easier. In other words, hemoglobin acts according to the proverb “appetite comes with eating.” The addition of oxygen even changes the properties of hemoglobin: it becomes a stronger acid. This fact is of great importance in the transfer of oxygen and carbon dioxide.

When breathing atmospheric air, hemoglobin is incompletely saturated - 95-97%. You can saturate it by using pure oxygen for breathing. It is enough to increase its content in the inhaled air to 35% (instead of the usual 24%). In this case, the oxygen capacity will be maximum (equal to 21 ml O 2 per 100 ml of blood). Oxygen will no longer be able to bind due to the lack of free hemoglobin.

During its life (it is approximately 120 days), the red blood cell does a tremendous job, transferring about a billion oxygen molecules from the lungs to the tissues. However, hemoglobin has an interesting feature: it does not always absorb oxygen with the same greed, nor does it give it to surrounding cells with the same willingness. This behavior of hemoglobin is determined by its spatial structure and can be regulated by both internal and external factors.

The position of the S-shaped curve is not constant, and its change indicates important changes in the biological properties of hemoglobin. If the curve shifts to the left and its bend decreases, then this indicates an increase in the affinity of hemoglobin for oxygen and a decrease in the reverse process - the dissociation of oxyhemoglobin. On the contrary, a shift of this curve to the right (and an increase in the bend) indicates the exact opposite picture - a decrease in the affinity of hemoglobin for oxygen and a better release of it to tissues. It is clear that shifting the curve to the left is advisable to capture oxygen in the lungs, and to the right to release it to the tissues.

It is interesting that the accumulation of carbon dioxide in the capillaries and a slight decrease in the pH of the environment just contribute to the release of oxygen by oxyhemoglobin (the dissociation curve shifts to the right, and the S-shaped bend increases). Hemoglobin, which plays the role of the blood buffer system itself, neutralizes carbon dioxide. In this case, bicarbonates are formed. Some of the carbon dioxide is bound by hemoglobin itself (resulting in the formation of carbhemoglobin). It is estimated that hemoglobin is directly or indirectly involved in the transport of up to 90% of carbon dioxide from tissues to the lungs. In the lungs, reverse processes occur, because oxygenation of hemoglobin leads to an increase in its acidic properties and the release of hydrogen ions into the environment. The latter, combining with bicarbonates, form carbonic acid, which is broken down by the enzyme carbonic anhydrase into carbon dioxide and water. Carbon dioxide is released by the lungs, and oxyhemoglobin, binding cations (in exchange for split-off hydrogen ions), moves to the capillaries of peripheral tissues. Such a close connection between the acts of supplying tissues with oxygen and removing carbon dioxide from tissues to the lungs reminds us that when using oxygen for medicinal purposes, we should not forget about another function of hemoglobin - to free the body from excess carbon dioxide.

Apparently, the constant mechanical work of the muscular organs required additional devices for catching and reserving oxygen. Nature created it in the form of myoglobin. It is possible that non-muscle cells also have some as yet unknown mechanism for capturing oxygen from the blood.

In general, the usefulness of the work of red blood cell hemoglobin is determined by how much it was able to carry to the cell and transfer oxygen molecules to it and remove the carbon dioxide that accumulates in the tissue capillaries. Unfortunately, this worker sometimes does not work at full capacity and through no fault of his own: the release of oxygen from oxyhemoglobin in the capillary depends on the ability of biochemical reactions in cells to consume oxygen. If little oxygen is consumed, then it seems to “stagnate” and, due to its low solubility in a liquid medium, no longer comes from the arterial bed. Doctors observe a decrease in the arteriovenous oxygen difference. It turns out that hemoglobin uselessly carries some of the oxygen, and besides, it carries less carbon dioxide. The situation is not pleasant.

At the same time, it is necessary to clearly know for what purposes oxygen is spent in cells, ensuring their normal existence?

On its way to its place of participation in metabolic reactions inside cells, oxygen overcomes many structural formations. The most important of them are biological membranes.

The lipid layer of the membrane is a liquid film that is in constant motion. Oxygen, due to its good solubility in fats, passes through the double lipid layer of membranes and enters the cells. Some of the oxygen is transferred to the internal environment of cells through carriers such as myoglobin. Oxygen is believed to be in a soluble state in the cell. Probably, it dissolves more in lipid formations, and less in hydrophilic ones. Let us remember that the structure of oxygen perfectly meets the criteria of an oxidizing agent used as an electron trap. It is known that the main concentration of oxidative reactions occurs in special organelles, mitochondria. The figurative comparisons that biochemists gave to mitochondria speak about the purpose of these small (0.5 to 2 microns in size) particles. They are called both “energy stations” and “power stations” of the cell, thereby emphasizing their leading role in the formation of energy-rich compounds.

ATP energy is used in a variety of processes: for the assembly of complex structures (for example, proteins, fats, carbohydrates, nucleic acids) from building proteins, mechanical activity (muscle contraction), electrical work (the emergence and propagation of nerve impulses), transport and accumulation of substances inside cells, etc. In short, life without energy is impossible, and as soon as there is a sharp shortage of it, living beings die.

Let us return to the question of the place of oxygen in energy generation. At first glance, the direct participation of oxygen in this vital process seems disguised. It would probably be appropriate to compare the combustion of hydrogen (and the resulting formation of energy) with a production line, although the respiratory chain is a line not for assembling, but for “disassembling” matter.

Briefly about the localization and design of the oxygen consumption apparatus for plastic purposes. In the membranes of the endoplasmic reticulum, which penetrates the cytoplasm of liver cells, there is a short electron transport chain. It differs from the long (with a large number of carriers) respiratory chain. The source of electrons and protons in this chain is reduced NADP, which is formed in the cytoplasm, for example, during the oxidation of glucose in the pentose phosphate cycle (hence glucose can be called a full partner in the detoxification of substances). Electrons and protons are transferred to a special protein containing flavin (FAD) and from it to the final link - a special cytochrome called cytochrome P-450. Like hemoglobin and mitochondrial cytochromes, it is a heme-containing protein. Its function is dual: it binds the oxidized substance and participates in the activation of oxygen. The end result of such a complex function of cytochrome P-450 is that one oxygen atom enters the molecule of the oxidized substance, and the second enters the water molecule. The differences between the final acts of oxygen consumption during the formation of energy in mitochondria and during the oxidation of substances in the endoplasmic reticulum are obvious. In the first case, oxygen is used to form water, and in the second - to form both water and an oxidized substrate. The proportion of oxygen consumed in the body for plastic purposes can be 10-30% (depending on the conditions for the favorable occurrence of these reactions).

Raising the question (even purely theoretically) about the possibility of replacing oxygen with other elements is pointless. Considering that this path of oxygen utilization is also necessary for the exchange of the most important natural compounds - cholesterol, bile acids, steroid hormones - it is easy to understand how far the functions of oxygen extend. It turns out that it regulates the formation of a number of important endogenous compounds and the detoxification of foreign substances (or, as they are now called, xenobiotics).

The latter is especially important in the case of the use of oxygen in such an “uncontrolled” process as peroxide (or free radical) oxidation of unsaturated fatty acids. Unsaturated fatty acids are part of various lipids in biological membranes. The architecture of membranes, their permeability and the functions of the enzymatic proteins included in the membranes are largely determined by the ratio of various lipids. Lipid peroxidation occurs either with the help of enzymes or without them. The second option is no different from free radical oxidation of lipids in conventional chemical systems and requires the presence of ascorbic acid. The participation of oxygen in lipid peroxidation is, of course, not the best way to utilize its valuable biological qualities. The free radical nature of this process, which can be initiated by divalent iron (the center of radical formation), allows it to quickly lead to the disintegration of the lipid backbone of membranes and, consequently, to cell death.

Such a catastrophe does not occur in natural conditions, however. Cells contain natural antioxidants (vitamin E, selenium, some hormones) that break the chain of lipid peroxidation, preventing the formation of free radicals. Nevertheless, the use of oxygen in lipid peroxidation, according to some researchers, also has positive aspects. Under biological conditions, lipid peroxidation is necessary for membrane self-renewal, since lipid peroxides are more water-soluble compounds and are more easily released from the membrane. They are replaced by new, hydrophobic lipid molecules. Only the excessiveness of this process leads to the collapse of membranes and pathological changes in the body.

However, it is no less important to supply oxygen to other plastic processes, although a smaller part of it is consumed for this. In addition to a number of necessary natural syntheses (cholesterol, bile acids, prostaglandins, steroid hormones, biologically active products of amino acid metabolism), the presence of oxygen is especially necessary for the neutralization of drugs and poisons. In case of poisoning by foreign substances, one can perhaps assume that oxygen is of greater vital importance for plastic than for energy purposes. In case of intoxication, this side of the action finds practical application. And only in one case does the doctor have to think about how to put a barrier to oxygen consumption in the cells. We are talking about inhibition of the use of oxygen in lipid peroxidation.

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The importance of air for plant and human life.

Air is a mixture of various gases. Oxygen contains a lot of nitrogen and oxygen. The most interesting thing is that without these components life on the planet is impossible. This is due to the fact that the data chemical substances contribute to the occurrence of various reactions in the body. Without them, metabolism is impossible.

What is the importance of air and oxygen for human life, plants and all living organisms?

This gas is involved in metabolic processes. Thanks to this gas, all living organisms breathe. This applies to both people and plants. Besides. When air is inhaled, the process of glucose oxidation occurs in the body of animals and humans. During this chemical reaction energy is released.

Without energy, in turn, it is not possible to carry out movement.

How long can a healthy person, a human brain, live without air or oxygen?

The meanings are ambiguous. It depends on the physical health and training. In general, an ordinary person on average can be without air for 4-9 minutes. If you take into account being underwater, the average beachgoer can be underwater for 30-80 seconds. And girls who extract pearls from water can live without air for 5 minutes. The fact is that without oxygen, energy production stops and the heart stops. Without oxygen, brain cells die.

Many methods have now been developed to prolong the breathless period. These techniques are practiced by yogis and famous divers.

Why does carbon dioxide accumulate in the blood when you hold your breath?

This occurs as a result of metabolic processes, or more precisely during the oxidation of glucose. When glucose and oxygen interact, water and carbon dioxide are produced, which accumulate in the body.

How much air and oxygen does a person need per hour, per day?

For every person this different numbers. The quantity also depends on the load.

Approximate air consumption per minute:

Sitting and resting position 6 l
Light physical activity 20 l
Fitness, cardio training 60 l

That is, per day the values will be:

864 l at rest
28800 l at light load
86400 l during heavy loads

Required volume of air, oxygen per person in the room: value

These numbers are used to guide the design of ventilation.

The average value is between 30-60 cubic meters of air per hour indoors.

What is the record for holding a person's breath underwater?

Tom Sitas is included in the Guinness Book of Records. This is a freediver whose lung capacity is 20% greater than that of ordinary person. His record was 22 minutes and 22 seconds. Breath holding occurred under water. Before the record, the diver breathed oxygen from a tank and did not eat for 5 hours.

Breath holding training: exercises

There are several techniques for training holding your breath.

Exercises:

Walking to count. In fact, there is no need to hold your breath at the very beginning of the workout. It is necessary to inhale after 10 steps and exhale after 10 steps. Over time, you can inhale and exhale to insert breath-holding intervals.
Yoga. Almost all yoga exercises are aimed at increasing lung capacity. You need to do yoga more often.
Rinsing. As paradoxical as it sounds, this exercise is often used in belly dancing. You need to take a deep breath and then exhale. After this, breathing is held and jerky movements of the stomach are carried out.
Dog breathing. It is necessary to breathe like a dog from time to time during the day. That is, take frequent and short inhalations and exhalations.

Air is the basis of life. Without it, the existence of people and other living organisms is impossible.

VIDEO: Holding your breath

As it has already turned out, red blood cells, and in particular Hemoglobin, bring oxygen to the cells of the body.
Why does a cell need oxygen?

Oxygen

Structural features of the O molecule - atmospheric oxygen consists of diatomic molecules, each O molecule contains 2 unpaired electrons.
Energy dissociation of the O molecule into atoms is quite high and is 493.57 kJ/mol.

High strength chemical bond between the atoms in the O molecule leads to the fact that at room temperature oxygen gas is chemically quite inactive. In nature, it slowly undergoes transformation during decay processes. When heated, even slightly, the chemical activity of oxygen increases sharply. When ignited, it reacts explosively with hydrogen, methane, other flammable gases, and a large number of simple and complex substances.

Why does a cell need energy?

Every living cell must constantly extract energy. She needs energy to generate heat and synthesize ( create) some vital chemical substances, such as proteins or hereditary substances. The cell needs energy, and to move.The cells of the body that are capable of movement are called muscle cells. They can shrink. This sets our arms, legs, heart, and intestines in motion. Finally, energy is needed to develop electricity : Thanks to it, some parts of the body communicate with others. And the connection between them is primarily provided by nerve cells.

How does a cell obtain energy?

Cells burn nutrients, and in the process a certain amount of energy is released.They can do this in two ways.
First, burn carbohydrates, mainly glucose, in lack of oxygen. this is the oldest form of energy extraction and is very ineffective. Remember that life originated in water, that is, in an environment where there was very little oxygen.

Secondly, body cellsburn pyruvic acid, fats and proteins in the presence of oxygen.All of these substances contain carbon and hydrogen.Burning hydrogen in pure oxygenreleases a large amount of energy

Remember television reports from spaceports about rocket launches? They soar upward due to the incredible amount of energy released during the oxidation of hydrogen, that is, when it is burned in oxygen.Space rockets the height of a tower rush into the sky due to the enormous energy that is released when hydrogen is burned in pure oxygen.Their fuel tanks are filled with liquid hydrogen and oxygen. When the engines start, hydrogen begins to oxidize and the huge rocket quickly flies into the sky. Perhaps this seems incredible, and yet: the same energy that carries a space rocket skyward also supports life in the cells of our body.This same energy maintains life in the cells of our body.Except that no explosion occurs in the cells and a sheaf of flame does not burst out of them. Oxidation occurs in stages, and therefore, instead of thermal and kinetic energy ATP molecules are formed.