Oxygen drops with exertion because your muscles require more energy when they’re active, and oxygen plays a role in generating that energy.
Unfortunately, your lungs can’t get enough oxygen into your bloodstream to meet the demand, so your levels drop. There are a number of reasons your lungs can’t do this.
Healthy muscles require less oxygen, they don’t have to work as much, so the demand is less.
The need for more oxygen while walking is common for those of us with respiratory problems, but low saturation levels are not and can be quite dangerous.
If you are using oxygen, you may need to increase the flow before exerting yourself. Talk to your doctor about adjusting your flow for exertion.
Why does my oxygen level drop when I walk?
When a healthy person exercises, blood oxygen pressure (PaO2) and oxygen saturation (O2 sat) stay the same or increase.
In a person with lung disease, during exercise, oxygen pressure and oxygen saturation may decrease.
This is called oxygen desaturation. If your oxygen saturation drops too low, that can put pressure on your lungs and your body. Additional oxygen may be needed during the activity to keep your oxygen concentration in a healthy range.
Your health care provider may recommend that you take an exercise test to check your oxygen levels during activity.
Use of oxygen in human body
Oxygen saturation is measured with a pulse oximeter.
A decrease in O2 saturation of 4% compared to resting oxygen saturation or an oxygen saturation less than or equal to 88% is considered significant.
Checking for oxygen desaturation during exercise can be done as part of a cardiopulmonary exercise test.
Oxygen saturation levels are checked during a six-minute walk test that also looks at how far a person can walk in a set period of time.
Sometimes oxygen desaturation is checked by doing a walk test on a treadmill or stationary bike in the pulmonary laboratory or by walking down a stairwell or hallway in the clinic.
Spo2 Normal Range by age Chart
If you have breathing problems, a fingertip oxygen meter is a quick and easy way to check the oxygen level in your blood.
Why does my oxygen level drop when I lay down?
Everyone’s blood oxygen levels are lower during sleep, due to a slightly reduced level of breathing.
Pulse Oximeter Readings Chart
There is no universal SpO2 number that indicates a person’s oxygen levels are healthy and ideal.
What happens when your Oxygen Level drops to 70?
If the level stays low for a long time, perhaps due to lack of treatment, the organs begin to malfunction.