It would seem that carbon dioxide not only harms the environment; it also harms our mental ability. According to this study recently published in the AGU journal GeoHealth, as the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere increases, indoor levels of the gas will increase as well, and this will “significantly reduce our basic decision-making ability and complex strategic thinking.”
"It's amazing how high CO2 levels get in enclosed spaces," said Kris Karnauskas, CIRES Fellow, associate professor at CU Boulder and lead author of the new study… "It affects everybody—from little kids packed into classrooms to scientists, business people and decision makers to regular folks in their houses and apartments."
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Put simply, when we breathe air with high CO2 levels, the CO2 levels in our blood rise, reducing the amount of oxygen that reaches our brains. Studies show that this can increase sleepiness and anxiety, and impair cognitive function.
It is said that by the end of the century, indoor levels of carbon dioxide will be three times that of today’s outdoor levels.
More details about this over at PHYS.org.
Scary.
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