The blood in humans delivers oxygen uniformly to each of the cells. When you inhale oxygen to let it enter your lungs, red blood corpuscles bind with it and carry it by going through your bloodstream. Indeed, the retention of oxygen in the human blood is essential for the life of a person.
However, due to Covid-19 attacks, respiratory diseases and cardiac problems, the oxygen level in human blood goes even below the saturation level. In this situation, you have to know how to increase blood oxygen levels to prevent death.
How to Increase Blood Oxygen Levels
Lie Down in Prone or Fowler Position
The prone position is the best way to boost the oxygen level in your body. To perform this, you have to lie down on your belly and raise your chest by taking support from pillows. You may place one pillow below your neck and two pillows below your shins to lie down on your belly.
Alternatively, you may lie on your left or right side and sit in the Fowler position or at a 90-degree angle to practice rapid breathing. Regardless of the underlying cause, you should stay in Fowler or prone position for a minimum of two hours or three hours. Doing so will improve your lung ventilation and your oxygen saturation level.
Change Your Breathing Style
How to increase blood oxygen levels by changing one’s breathing style? The saturation level of your blood oxygen depends on your breathing pattern. When you change your breathing style, you may observe a significant boost in your oxygen saturation level.
You only have to follow the right breathing method that involves the use of a diaphragm instead of using the chest. You have to inhale oxygen slowly and deeply or inhale air as much as possible to give more oxygen to the body. Other than that, you should breathe from your nose only instead of breathing from your mouth and nose both.
Do Simple Breathing Exercises
Cardiologists and pulmonary rehabilitation experts recommend everyone perform a few simple breathing exercises to open their airways in no time. You should especially do deep belly breathing and pursed-lip breathing exercises to increase the level of oxygen in the body. You may check the oxygen level in your blood by using a pulse oximeter.
Aerobic Exercises
Everyone knows that aerobic exercises work as catalysts for metabolic activities in the human body. However, many people do not know that aerobic exercises are perfect solutions how to increase blood oxygen levels. The exercises relieve breathing problems and improve the oxygen saturation level in the blood.
When you do aerobic exercises regularly, your body cells will get and use the available oxygen better to improve the oxygen level in your blood and body. Besides, aerobics will increase your immunity and endurance.
Include Antioxidants and Fatty Acids in Your Diet
Antioxidants help the human body to use oxygen to enter the bloodstream efficiently. Hence, you may include a few antioxidants in your daily diet. These include cranberries, blueberries, strawberries, plums, and kidney beans.
Furthermore, you have to consider adding a few food items rich in Vitamin F and fatty acids. These food items increase the hemoglobin capacity in your bloodstream for carrying oxygen.
You should also consume iron-rich foods, like apples, green veggies, fish, legumes, and poultry products. These food items strengthen the red blood corpuscles present in your body.
Stay Hydrated for the Entire Day
How to increase blood oxygen levels with increased water intake? The answer is hydration maintains the required level of oxygen in your blood. When you drink water in enough amounts, your lungs stay hydrated to improve your ability to expel carbon dioxide by oxygenation. Consuming enough water helps regulates your body temperature and boosts your immune system.
Quit the Activity of Cigarette Smoking
Many people have found drastic improvement in their oxygen levels within only two weeks after they quit the activity of smoking cigarettes. Moreover, quitting smoking improves the function of the lungs and blood circulation by about 30 percent more than before.
Open Windows or Move Outside to Inhale Fresh Air
In some cases, you may increase the amount of oxygen entering your body by opening your windows. Alternatively, you may go for a brisk walk to increase the oxygen level in your blood. Besides, inhaling fresh air and brisk walking improve your energy levels and digestion.
Grow a Few Houseplants
Growing houseplants may purify the indoor air on your property. The greenery on your balcony or around the garden area does much more than increase your home décor. These plants remove carbon dioxide to replenish the oxygen levels entering your home. Hence, you get enough oxygen available for absorption in your body.
Conclusion
Oxygen on its cellular level replaces wear-out cells in the human body. It also supplies the required energy and supports the immune system. Hence, you have to make sure of retaining the necessary blood oxygen level to let your body function well and stay healthy.
