Reasons Why A Humidifier Does Not Increase Oxygen, and Ways to Raise O2 in your Home
One very popular question on the web is: Does a humidifier increase oxygen in the room?
Well, the TRUTH is, it doesn’t! It lowers the level of oxygen in the room slightly. Not that you will notice the small drop in the level of oxygen, from 02 drops from 20.9% to 20.4%.
A humidifier works by releasing tiny droplets of water into the air in the form of mist.
During the winter, when you turn on the heating, it dries out the air. Thus, you should use a humidifier more in winter than in other seasons.
But does a humidifier increase oxygen in your indoor air? It does not add oxygen to the air. Water contains one molecule of oxygen (H2O), but this does not increase the level of oxygen in the air. It might help you breathe better because it makes allergens like pollen and dust heavy, so they don’t float in the air.
Overall, a regular humidifier only raises the level of moisture in the air, but it does not raise the level of oxygen.
A medical humidifier increases oxygen
A medical oxygen humidifier increases the level of O2 in the air. Such a unit is only found in hospital settings, so it is not something that you will buy for home use.
An oxygen humidifier moistens the oxygen being delivered to a patient through a tracheostomy.
This is necessary since, in this case (using a ventilator), the oxygen does not pass through the upper airways, where it is moistened.
Read: How do I stop humidifier white dust?
Does humidity affect oxygen saturation?
What is oxygen’s relationship with humidity?
The higher you go, the cooler and more humid it becomes. Of course, at high altitudes, the air feels much thinner, and so many people find it hard to inhale properly.
That is why we ask: Does humidity affect oxygen saturation?
It does. Science shows that oxygen saturation in dry air is far higher than what you get in humid air. When humidity is high, the saturation of oxygen is at 20.9 percent.
In high humidity, the oxygen saturation is at 20.4 percent, a small difference but one that your lungs will feel.
Now, when you have dry air at home, you can breathe well, as long as you do not have respiratory issues such as asthma.
However, when you turn on the humidifier, you will find it hard to breathe well if the humidity level rises above 55 percent. I will explain this in the next section.
Can a humidifier make breathing worse?
When you set the humidity too high, a humidifier can make it hard to breathe.
When it starts to release mist into your indoor air, the water molecules start to displace the oxygen molecules in the air.
Read: Why is my dehumidifier blowing cold air?
The result is fewer oxygen molecules, and so you cannot breathe very well.
In addition, too much humidity in the air is both uncomfortable and has its effects on health.
The best thing is that you can buy a humidifier that has an automatic on-and-off feature, such as the Honeywell 350 Unit. When the set humidity level in the house is attained, it just turns itself off automatically.
When the humidity drops below the required levels, it starts automatically, as long as there is enough water in the tank.
If you have a chronic respiratory problem such as asthma, you will also find it harder to breathe in high humidity. It can cause inflammation in your airways.
Too much humidity in the house can lead to the development of mold. In return, this will cause your family members to start exhibiting humidifier sickness symptoms.
Mold also spreads mold spores, which can aggravate asthma and other conditions when we inhale them.
How you can use a humidifier to increase oxygen
If you have determined that there is a low oxygen saturation in your indoor air, you can use a small oxygen concentrator unit.
It separates oxygen from the air. You can then connect your humidifier to the concentrator so that the oxygen is delivered through the mist that the humidifier releases into the room.
That way, there will be increased humidity and oxygen levels in your indoor air, helping you to breathe better.
Only then can we say that you have increased oxygen in the air using a humidifier? When used alone, a humidifier is never going to increase the level of oxygen in your air.
Does humidity increase oxygen?
In another article, we saw the relationship between temperature and humidity. In the same way, there is also a relationship between humidity and oxygen levels.
When humidity rises, oxygen levels start to drop! The simple explanation is that there is less pressure in the air. Therefore, per cubic meter, there is less nitrogen and oxygen and more water vapor.
There is something called the partial pressure of oxygen. This refers to the effectiveness of the lungs to pulling oxygen from the environment and absorbing it into the bloodstream.
Generally, when there is more water vapor in the air, there is less P02, or partial pressure of oxygen. Therefore, it is normal to experience breathlessness if you get active in high humidity.
In a way, since the air you inhale gets to the lungs already humidified, the argument is that the humidity or dryness of the air does not affect the partial pressure of oxygen getting to your lungs.
Does humidity reduce oxygen?
An increase in humidity does reduce the oxygen level in the air. That is why engaging in activity when the humidity is high leaves you panting for air and sweating hard as the body tries to cool down.
While humid air is less dense than dry air, all the same, it feels thick. And it affects how we breathe.
If you have asthma or other respiratory conditions, you will feel the effects of high humidity more than a healthy person.
The high content of water vapor in the air makes it hard to breathe. Therefore, your body has to work harder to inhale. This is one of the effects of high humidity on the body.
Whether the water vapor reduces oxygen or not is not the question. The question is whether, in high humidity, you experience breathing difficulty.
Does Humidifier Increase Oxygen: FAQ
The relationship between humidity level and oxygen saturation is not that complicated to understand. If you still need more clarification, see the frequently asked questions below:
Does humidity affect oxygen saturation?
No, it does not. It reduces oxygen saturation from 20.9% to 20.4%, and this is why it is difficult to breathe in high humidity. You run out of breath too soon, so you find yourself gasping for air.
What does a humidifier do for your lungs?
Running a humidifier has its benefits for the lungs. First, the right humidity level helps to reduce the allergen level in the air.
For instance, dust mites, pollen, and pet dander get too heavy, so they fall to the ground. You don’t inhale them. In that regard, a humidifier can help your lungs.
If the humidity is too high, though, it can lead to inflammation of the airways in the same way that dry air can.
How do you increase oxygen levels in a room?
Increasing the oxygen levels in your house is not too hard. By using indoor plants, opening windows, and using artificial means to increase the airflow in your house, you can increase your indoor comfort a great deal.
There are a few things to do, which include things like:
Open the windows for more airflow
You may open the windows and doors, get more indoor plants, and remove air pollutants using an air purifier.
The good thing is that even if you are running some appliances, they will still perform even with the windows open. For instance, you can use an air purifier with the windows open.
Please note that sometimes it makes sense to keep the windows closed. When the humidity outside is high, you need to prevent the air from outside from coming in. The outdoor humidity affects indoor humidity.
Use indoor plants
Many varieties of indoor plants can increase the oxygen levels in your room and make your life comfortable.
The way it works, humans exhale carbon dioxide, and plants use it for photosynthesis, and in the process, they produce oxygen. Therefore, for plants, oxygen is a by-product of photosynthesis.
Some of the indoor plants that increase oxygen levels include areca palms, golden pathos, snake plants, Boston ferns, aloe vera, and weeping figs, to name but a few.
In any case, indoor plants are a huge trend right now, and they will be for many years. Therefore, having several of them boosts your interior decor a great deal.
Remember to improve the quality of the air that is already available in the room. You can do this by running an air purifier to remove formaldehyde from the air.
Should the humidifier run all night?
You can run a humidifier all night, but keep it at the recommended distance from your bed. It should also have a humidistat.
The built-in humidistat monitors the humidity level and turns the humidifier on when the humidity level goes lower than the set level. The humidifier is also going to turn off automatically when the set humidity level is achieved.
With such a humidifier, there is no problem letting it stay plugged in all the time. However, if you have a simple regular unit, such as the best humidifier for a 3 x 3 grow tent, you should not keep it on all the time.
If you must leave it on when going to sleep, you should leave it on the low mist setting and refill the tank. If the tank runs out of water, the unit will stop working.
Final Thoughts
A humidifier does not increase oxygen levels in the air.
Too high humidity like 70 percent makes breathing hard. Thus, the main thing is to keep your indoor humidity level between 30 and 55 percent.
The water molecules in the mist from the humidifier displace oxygen molecules in your air, making your indoor air less saturated with oxygen.
Keep the humidity level in your house below 60 percent. Above that, it can cause mold, which would in turn cause mold exposure symptoms in your children.
