Why is carbon monoxide considered more dangerous than carbon dioxide for human health even at low concentrations?
It binds strongly with haemoglobin to form carboxyhaemoglobin, reducing oxygen transport in the blood
Carbon monoxide (CO) binds to haemoglobin at the same site as oxygen, but its affinity for haemoglobin is about 200 to 250 times greater than that of oxygen.
This forms a stable complex called carboxyhaemoglobin, which cannot carry oxygen to body tissues.
Even a small concentration of CO can therefore tie up a large fraction of the blood's haemoglobin, drastically reducing oxygen transport and causing hypoxia, unlike carbon dioxide, which does not bind haemoglobin so strongly.
Hence, the correct answer is that CO binds strongly with haemoglobin to form carboxyhaemoglobin, reducing oxygen transport in the blood.
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