Respiratory System

How We Breathe

When we breathe in, the diaphragm moves down allowing the lungs to expand and fill up with air.

Our bodies can only absorb 25% on the oxygen we breathe in which means that when we breathe out we expel:

• Carbon dioxide which is poisonous to the body and;
• 75% of the oxygen we tried to breathe in

Which is why we can give rescue breathes to another person in cardiac arrest.

Positional Asphyxia

This is when a casualty’s diaphragm is being crushed by their own body or other organs.  This can occur to an unconscious casualty who collapses in the prone position (on their front).

Which is why it’s critical to put a casualty into the recovery position.