This is very interesting and relevant work. Thank you.
I think we need to consider very carefully that not just humans, but all life on Earth is adapted to a narrow range of atmospheric, ocean and terrestrial chemistry, and temperatures, and delicate ecological niches. All these are being affected now, and we have almost no conception of the changes being triggered, or the cascading effects of, for example, diseases, essential bacteria and viruses, pollutants, and the knock on effects on essential food crops, fish stocks, farmed animals, child health, and so much more.
We are currently pressing all the buttons and tugging at the levers of the Earth systems that sustain all life, on the only planet we have ever found that CAN support life, and have no idea what any of these buttons and levers might do.
It is range-limited and time-limited to some degree, but I don't think this chronic mild increase in CO2 has been studied at all.
We do know that people with bad obstructive sleep apnea for hours in the night, over years, attenuate their CO2 respiratory drive, and can run remarkably high blood CO2 levels at rest, because of that.
Were current levels to double or triple, people could still maintain blood levels similar to what they now have through a bit of hyperventilation.
Deaths from hypercapnia (chronic excess blood CO2) are almost always due to the underlying cause, such as pneumonia, chronic lung disease or severe neurological impairment. Bad sleep apnea responds well to treatment, if treatment is used.
This just has not been studied as far as I know, and why would it be? Who might profit?
The military might know something from studying submariners, pilots and astronauts.
This is very interesting and relevant work. Thank you.
I think we need to consider very carefully that not just humans, but all life on Earth is adapted to a narrow range of atmospheric, ocean and terrestrial chemistry, and temperatures, and delicate ecological niches. All these are being affected now, and we have almost no conception of the changes being triggered, or the cascading effects of, for example, diseases, essential bacteria and viruses, pollutants, and the knock on effects on essential food crops, fish stocks, farmed animals, child health, and so much more.
We are currently pressing all the buttons and tugging at the levers of the Earth systems that sustain all life, on the only planet we have ever found that CAN support life, and have no idea what any of these buttons and levers might do.
I suspect we may well find out soon enough.
If global CO2 goes up a bit, we might all hyperventilate a little as physiologic adaptation, the "respiratory CO2 drive" functionality.
I'm not sure.
We may see...
Think about that, John. If it were so simple, nobody would ever die of hypercapnia.
It is range-limited and time-limited to some degree, but I don't think this chronic mild increase in CO2 has been studied at all.
We do know that people with bad obstructive sleep apnea for hours in the night, over years, attenuate their CO2 respiratory drive, and can run remarkably high blood CO2 levels at rest, because of that.
Were current levels to double or triple, people could still maintain blood levels similar to what they now have through a bit of hyperventilation.
Deaths from hypercapnia (chronic excess blood CO2) are almost always due to the underlying cause, such as pneumonia, chronic lung disease or severe neurological impairment. Bad sleep apnea responds well to treatment, if treatment is used.
This just has not been studied as far as I know, and why would it be? Who might profit?
The military might know something from studying submariners, pilots and astronauts.