How does a person whose diet had been deficient in iron over a period of several years affect the percentage of oxygen in inspired and expired air?

Question

blues · Answer

Iron is a cofactor - or a metal atom which binds to, stabilizes and helps the function of proteins - in many proteins in the body.

One of the important ones is hemoglobin, which transports oxygen in the blood. If the person's diet is deficient in iron, then the amount of iron available to bind hemoglobin and transports blood decreases. So a lower percent of the oxygen that goes into the lungs makes it into the blood.

To get the same amount of oxygen into the tissues, the person needs to breathe more oxygen total. Hope that's clear.