Check the batteries at least twice a year at the same time as checking the smoke detector batteries. Put them near each sleeping area on every level of the house. Have carbon monoxide detectors in the home. To help prevent carbon monoxide poisoning: Damage to the heart, possibly leading to life-threatening heart problems.Older people who have carbon monoxide poisoning may be more likely to get brain damage.ĭamage from carbon monoxide depends on how much is breathed in and for how long. Young children take breaths more often than adults do. Fetal blood cells take up carbon monoxide more easily than adult blood cells do. Risk factorsīreathing in carbon monoxide can be especially dangerous for:

And smoking through a water pipe, called a hookah, has been linked to increasing numbers of younger people getting carbon monoxide poisoning. This prevents oxygen from getting to tissues and organs.īreathing in smoke during a fire also can cause carbon monoxide poisoning. Examples are using a charcoal grill indoors or a running car inside a garage.īreathing the fumes causes carbon monoxide to replace oxygen in the blood. But if they're used in a partly closed or closed space, the carbon monoxide level can be a danger. Most often the amount of carbon monoxide from these sources isn't cause for worry in areas with good air flow. Many fuel-burning products and engines make carbon monoxide. When to see a doctorįor possible carbon monoxide poisoning, get into fresh air and seek medical care right away. Carbon monoxide can cause brain damage or death before anyone realizes there's a problem. Symptoms might include:Ĭarbon monoxide poisoning can be especially dangerous for people who are asleep, drugged or drunk. The risk of these is higher in people who lost consciousness from the carbon monoxide and older people. Symptoms related to the nervous system and brain can come on after recovery from carbon monoxide poisoning. Clearer symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning can include: Exposure over time might lead to symptoms that can be mistaken for the flu without the fever. Carbon monoxide poisoning affects the brain and heart the most.

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