Oxygen saturation (O2 sat) is a measure of how much oxygen is circulating in your blood. For most healthy adults, a normal level falls in the range of 95% and 100%.
Each time we breathe, the lungs exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide molecules to and from the bloodstream. The oxygen molecules attach to a substance in our red blood cells called hemoglobin. Oxygen is then circulated through the blood stream until it gets dropped off to the body’s tissues. The hemoglobin then picks up carbon dioxide molecules from the tissues and transports them back to the lungs, and so the cycle begins all over again.
How much oxygen we have in our blood depends on a number of things:
- How much oxygen you breathe in
- How well your body swaps carbon dioxide for oxygen
- How much hemoglobin is in your red blood cells
- How well your hemoglobin attracts oxygen
Medical conditions that affect oxygen saturation
There are some conditions that can affect your oxygen saturation, including:
- Respiratory infections like a cold, the flu, COVID-19
- Asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
- Collapsed lung or blood clot in the lung
- Iron deficiency
- Heart disease
- Congenital (birth) heart defects
If you have a chronic health condition that affects your lungs, blood, or circulation, tracking your oxygen saturation is important.
How to raise your oxygen level
If your oxygen saturation level is below 95%, you should call your healthcare provider. You should seek emergency medical care if it is below 90%.
You can also try to increase your blood oxygen levels with the following:
- Sit up straight
- Cough to loosen up any mucus (like from allergies or a cold/the flu)
- Take deep, full breaths
- If you are outdoors and it is very hot/very cold, go indoors
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8367170/
https://www.verywellhealth.com/oxygen-saturation-914796
https://www.mayoclinic.org/symptoms/hypoxemia/basics/causes/sym-20050930
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