From: sbharris@ix.netcom.com(Steven B. Harris)
Newsgroups: alt.conspiracy.princess-diana,sci.med,uk.sci.med.pharamcy,sci.chem
Subject: Re: Substance yielding CO and ethanol in human body
Date: 5 Jul 1998 23:43:27 GMT

In <35a2d6bd.4241031@news.cybercity.dk> mythic@iname.com (Niels M.
Møller) writes:

>Hi, all !
>
>On Wed, 24 Jun 1998 15:24:00 +12, B.Hamilton@irl.cri.nz (Bruce
>Hamilton) wrote:
>
>>CO can also be reported as carboxyhaemoglobin saturation %,
>>with tobacco smokers typically having 4 - 20%, with a mean
>
>Does this effectively mean that at 20 % carboxyhaemoglobin saturation,
>20 % of the person's blood's ability to transport oxygen is put out of
>function ?


   Correct, but that only means your heart has to pump 20% faster.
Like you're strolling when you're sitting.  It's equivalent to being
moderately anemic, and having only 80% of a normal hemoglobin
reading--- something that is not uncommon in young women.

   CO binds to brain heme enzymes, however, and nobody knows what that
does (it kills your neurons if CO gets too high-- we do know THAT).
And it may do direct damage to the cells that line arteries, leading to
atherosclerosis, eventually.

   Note that the body makes some CO on its own, from normal hemoglobin
metabolism (not CO containing hemoglobin-- just normal hemoglobin).  So
you'd have a few % in your blood, even if you breathed perfectly pure
air.

                                        Steve Harris, M.D.

From: sbharris@ix.netcom.com(Steven B. Harris)
Newsgroups: alt.conspiracy.princess-diana,sci.med,uk.sci.med.pharamcy,sci.chem
Subject: Re: Substance yielding CO and ethanol in human body
Date: 20 Jul 1998 05:19:51 GMT

In <banana-1907981251510001@borve.demon.co.uk>
banana@REMOVE_THIS.borve.demon.co.uk (banana) writes:

>In article <35a62915.441186@news.cybercity.dk>, mythic@iname.com (Niels M.
>Møller) wrote:
>
>> On 5 Jul 1998 23:43:27 GMT, sbharris@ix.netcom.com(Steven B. Harris)
>> wrote:
>>
>> >
>> >   Note that the body makes some CO on its own, from normal hemoglobin
>> >metabolism (not CO containing hemoglobin-- just normal hemoglobin). So
>> >you'd have a few % in your blood, even if you breathed perfectly pure
>> >air.
>> >
>> >                                        Steve Harris, M.D.
>>
>> Maybe it's due to those few % I'm feeling so drowsy sometimes...or
>> maybe they've nuked some of my neurons too ? ;-).
>>
>> Are there certain conditions/diseases/etc. that are known to make this
>> percentage fall or rise ?


    Sure.  Anything that causes hemolysis of red cells will increase
hemoglobin turnover, and cause the level to rise some.  A person with
sickle cell anemia, for instance, would be expected to have higher
blood CO levels than normal.




>What is the normal 'background level' of CO? Surely even 'a few %'
>would be quite a large figure?


   Not really.  A few percent merely takes that much hemoglobin out of
commission.  Normal is somewhere around 1%, and you do fine on the
other 99%.  Smokers run 2 to 15%, with an average of around 5%.  That's
like being 5% anemic.  Not a big problem.

   CO really gets you only when it replaces so much of your hemoglobin
that your carrying capacity is down-- like having only 1/3rd of your
normal hemoglobin levels.  CO at those levels also has enough partial
pressure to bind Fe containing brain enzymes, and cause direct neuronal
hypoxic death.

                                       Steve Harris, M.D.

From: sbharris@ix.netcom.com(Steven B. Harris)
Newsgroups: alt.conspiracy.princess-diana,sci.med,uk.sci.med.pharamcy,sci.chem
Subject: Re: Substance yielding CO and ethanol in human body
Date: 21 Jul 1998 05:08:48 GMT

In <banana-2007981103090001@borve.demon.co.uk>
banana@REMOVE_THIS.borve.demon.co.uk (banana) writes:

>In article <6ouk1n$h7n@dfw-ixnews7.ix.netcom.com>,
>sbharris@ix.netcom.com(Steven B. Harris) wrote:
>
><snip>
>
>> >What is the normal 'background level' of CO? Surely even 'a few %'
>> >would be quite a large figure?
>>
>>
>>    Not really.  A few percent merely takes that much hemoglobin out of
>> commission.  Normal is somewhere around 1%, and you do fine on the
>> other 99%.  Smokers run 2 to 15%, with an average of around 5%. That's
>> like being 5% anemic.  Not a big problem.
>
>We have heard here that 20% or 30% would cause headaches and impair
>concentration etc.
>
>Under what conditions might a smoker run 15%? Are we talking about
>somebody who has just chain-smoked a packet of 20 Capstan non-filters?


   Something like that. Three pack a day people.

   I don't think filters do much to stop CO.  In fact, by decreasing
air flow, they probably increase CO.  I'm guessing there on that, and
haven't been to medline.  If I'm right, you probably get more CO per
cigarette from the low tar slim stick lady's brands.