Carbon monoxide bonds very tightly to the hemoglobin in your blood, making its effects cumulative. Meaning that the effects of carbon monoxide poisoning do not go away immediately after there is no further exposure. Lower levels of exposure to carbon monoxide can cause symptoms similar to the flu, including headaches, drowsiness, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, dizzy spells, fast heart rate and irritability. As exposure increases, confusion, disorientation, loss of consciousness, convulsions, brain damage and death can result. Victims of carbon monoxide poisoning may attribute the early symptoms of its poisonous effects to common illnesses and stay indoors where they continue to be exposed and are often overcome while sleeping.
Carbon monoxide is a byproduct of incomplete combustion of ordinary fuels.
Automobiles and common fuel-burning home appliances produce it. Including furnaces, water heaters, pool heaters, clothes dryers, ranges, ovens, fireplaces, heating stoves, space heaters, kerosene heaters and charcoal grills. It is also found in the exhaust of gasoline and diesel automobiles, trucks, lawnmowers, trimmers, leaf blowers, chain saws, portable pumps, electric generators and other devices. If any of these things are improperly venting their exhaust into your home, carbon monoxide can spread throughout your home via walls, doorways, vents, cracks and crevices. Since the effects of carbon monoxide poisoning are cumulative, the danger of exposure to CO depends on both the level of concentration and the length of exposure.