CO2 Affects our Thinking

Did you know that elevated levels of carbon dioxide or CO2 can
play havoc with our cognitive ability? In today’s world it becomes
all the more alarming because we spend 90% of our time indoors; in
rooms with poor air quality and ventilation. Until a few years ago it was
common knowledge that carbon monoxide and other VOCs (Volatile
Organic Compounds) caused problems like asthma. CO2 was ignored
and was not considered a gas that could be harmful. Yet many types of
research conclude otherwise.

With changing lifestyle we tend to spend 90% of our time indoors. Hence it is more important than before
to make sure that the indoor air quality is healthy and CO2 levels are maintained at no more than
600ppm. Studies have shown that there are several times in a day when the CO2 in a room spikes to
1000ppm and more. This is indeed an unhealthy level of carbon dioxide and a cause for concern.

A study published in Environmental Health Perspectives

(https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/wp-content/uploads/advpub/2015/10/ehp.1510037.acco.pdf) found modest
changes in the indoor air quality to have a major impact on a person’s decision making ability. In this
study, 24 individuals in varied professions were asked to remain in a controlled environment, from 9 am
to 5pm for 6 full working days. The total study time period was for 2 weeks.

The participants were split into two groups of 12 each and kept in two adjacent rooms. Each room had the
same furniture, laptops, cubicles and other office equipment. This was to ensure that other factors did not
contribute to the results of the study. One room was labeled green and had good ventilation, while the
other had elevated levels of CO2, not above the permissible limits, but what is normally present indoors.
Analysts of the study were blinded to the test conditions when they analyzed the data so, that they were no
chance of bias in the results.

Participants were tested on their cognitive abilities each day at about 3 pm. They were given real life
situations (an example of a situation: if you were to be the mayor of the town what changes would you
bring to your town) and the answers were later analyzed using software. The nine parameters that the
participants were tested were:

• The ability to make decisions at any given time

• The capability to make decisions that achieved the desired goal

• The capacity to pay attention to surroundings

• The capability of completing given tasks

• The capacity to respond to an emergency

• The ability to gather information

• The ability to use the gathered information for the given goals

• The capacity to make decisions using a variety of options along with multiple dimensions

• The capacity of complex thinking

The results of the study were amazing. Participants who worked in the elevated CO2 levels were
found to have significant difficulty with their decision making abilities and thinking
capabilities. The cognitive scores of participants in the Green building were 61% higher than the

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participants in the conventional buildings and the participants in the Green + building had cognitive skills
as high as 101%.

Source: https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/wp-content/uploads/advpub/2015/10/ehp.1510037.acco.pdf

So what is the reason behind the impairments of the cognitive ability? According to medical research
increased level of CO2 in the blood decreases the cerebral metabolism of oxygen. In simple
words, the brain becomes oxygen deprived and has an impact on our thinking abilities. It
is a well documented fact of what high levels of carbon dioxide can do to the brain.
Space travel, scuba diving, fire fighting, airplanes and submarines are examples where high carbon
dioxide levels have lead to fatalities.

Carbon dioxide dissolves in our blood and reacts with the water in our blood to create carbonic acid. This,
in turn, dissolves into ions of hydrogen and bicarbonate. If there is an increase in the concentration of
hydrogen ions in our blood the blood acidity level increases and creates electrolyte imbalance, causing
increased discomfort and decline in intellectual performance. If you feel tired after just a couple of hours
of work (when you have had a restful night), feel sleepy at work and cannot focus on presentations, it
could mean that the indoor air quality needs to be inspected for CO2.

People can argue that they spend at least an hour outdoors every day but, does that help? With our current
lifestyle, most of us spend 90% of our time awake indoors in addition to the time we sleep. Whether it’s
your home or office the quality of the air circulating within could be poor with concentrated amounts of
carbon dioxide. So, irrespective of the number of hours you spend outdoors, if the air quality indoors isn’t
healthy you end up feeling sick.

How can the indoor air quality be improved? Improving the indoor air quality is important and here are a

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few easy and effective ways to improve your indoor air quality and reduce the concentration of carbon
dioxide.

• Make sure your home or office has a periodic supply of fresh air. Opening windows for a few minutes two
or three times a day can improve the air quality to a large extent

• Keeping a few indoor plants that release oxygen especially at night helps improve the air quality by
absorbing carbon dioxide, even after the sun goes down. Aloe Vera, Peepal, Tulsi (Indian Basil),
and Gerbera are a few examples

• Make sure that nobody smokes indoors. Indoor air quality turns poor with secondary smoke and is an
important contributor to indoor air pollution

• Installation of exhaust fans especially in kitchens helps reduce carbon dioxide released during cooking.
Making sure that the smoke released during cooking does not circulate indoors. The absence of exhausts
will increase the levels of carbon dioxide. This is especially important for smaller restaurants and houses

• Regular maintenance of your HVAC (heating, ventilating and air conditioning) will ensure that there is
no accumulation of CO2 indoors

It is time to take charge and do something about the increased carbon dioxide levels if we do not want a
dumber next generation with low IQ levels. Normal humans have an IQ between 100 and 130.
People with an IQ of 70 and less are considered mentally handicapped. So with increased CO2
levels, a decrease in the IQ by even 5 points will bring a lot more people into the ‘mentally handicapped’
label unless action is taken immediately. So the next time you feel sleepy or can’t concentrate on a lecture
or at the office you should know the culprit is probably not the subject of the meeting or lecture, but the air
quality.

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