How much oxygen does the brain need?
The brain requires a large amount of energy compared to its body mass. In fact, our brains consume 20 percent of the body’s oxygen supply.
How does this add up to 20%?
The normal human brain consumes 3.5 ml of O2 per 100 g of brain tissue per minute. With the average human brain weighing 1400 g (∼2% of total body weight), it, therefore, consumes ∼49 ml O2 per minute, or 20% of total body oxygen consumed while at rest.
Do certain parts or areas of the brain require more energy than others?
Gray matter consumes more than twice as much oxygen as white matter, with the highest consumption occurring in the medial occipital lobe. Certain functions require more energy than others. The brain areas responsible for hearing actually require more energy than the olfactory system or the areas of the brain responsible for memory. This is because hearing requires very fast and precise signaling. Processes like smell do not need the same intense energy needs.
However, how much oxygen is consumed in the brain and how much of it is needed to carry out neuronal activity was so far largely unknown.
LMU neurobiologists Hans Straka, Suzan Özugur, and Lars Kunz have now succeeded for the first time in directly measuring this in the intact brain and correlating it with nerve cell activity. They demonstrated that during normal operation only about 50 percent of the oxygen is used for nerve cell activity, and the remaining 50 percent is required for glial cells and for maintaining the basic metabolic rate of nerve cells.
What will happen if the brain does not get enough Oxygen
If the brain does not get enough Oxygen, it will lead to Brain hypoxia. This can occur when someone is drowning, choking, suffocating, or even during cardiac arrest. Brain injury, stroke, and carbon monoxide poisoning are other possible causes of brain hypoxia.
Who is at risk for brain hypoxia?
1. If your job or regular activities involve situations wherein you are deprived of oxygen
2. Participating in sports like boxing and football also puts you at risk for brain hypoxia as it can many times lead to head injuries.
3. Sports wherein one needs to hold their breaths for long periods of time like swimming and diving are also susceptible to brain hypoxia.
4. People involved in the trekking are also susceptible to this condition as oxygen levels would be very less in high altitudes
5. If you are a person suffering from severe asthma or low blood pressure, then you too are at risk of getting brain hypoxia
If you would like to know more brain facts check out Here are 20 remarkable Brain facts not known by many people
