mouth to mouth

[dannyday5821]

this going to sound really stupid! but why does mouth to mouth work? if we breath in oxygen, and exhale carbon dioxide...then how can exhaling carbon dioxide into the lungs of someone not breathing help them to breath again?

[crisgal]

many experts now believe that mouth to mouth is not necessary, and to just do CPR.
You may find this interesting

http://firstaid.about.com/od/cpr/a/07_Y_no_bre aths.htm

[sqad617]

The Repiratory Centre in the brain is stimulated by carbon dioxide but suppressed by oxygen. So to stimulate the the RC u need a build up fo carbon dioxide. However, I agree with crisgal in that mouth to mouth is b..ger all use and that one should go straight to external cardiac massage.

[mrs_overall]

Hi danny.
Roughly, the air we breathe in is 80% nitrogen, 20% oxygen.
The air we breathe out is 80% nitrogen, 16% oxygen, 4% carbon dioxide.
There is currently a great deal of controversy about the effectiveness of expired air resuscitation and it's my bet that very soon The Resuscitation Council of GB will say that it's not needed. Current first aid training still teaches it, but if, for example someone has severe facial injuries and it cannot be administered, chest compressions can still be effective at circulating oxygen around the body. (The lungs always retain a certain amount of air, called residual volume).
The only time I would say that "mouth to mouth" is essential is in cases of drowning and carbon monoxide poisoning.

[thebrainy123]

its just a scam for old pervert doctors to give mouth to mouth to young women!!!

[mrs_overall]

lol @ brainy.

I wish! Every time I've had to do it for real it's been on pensioners. One was an old tramp and I caught scabies from him.
Very pleasant - not.

[Bohne]

@crisgal: The reason why some people say, just do CPR is that they fear people will do nothing if they have to do mouth to mouth, and obviously ANYTHING is better than running away from an injured person.

But in the end, the oxygene the unconscious person already has in his/her body will get used up, and then pumping the blood round the body will be pretty pointless!

The fact that there is enough Oxygene left in the air you breathe out to keep somebody else alive has already been explained!