Your blood oxygen level is a measure of how much oxygen your red blood cells are carrying. Your body closely regulates your blood oxygen level. Maintaining the precise balance of oxygen-saturated blood is vital to your health.
Most children and adults don’t need to monitor their blood oxygen level. In fact, many doctors won’t check it unless you’re showing signs of a problem, like shortness of breath or chest pain.
However, people with chronic health conditions many need to monitor their blood oxygen level. This includes asthma, heart disease, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). In these cases, monitoring your blood oxygen level can help determine if treatments are working, or if they should be adjusted.
A normal blood oxygen level varies between 75 and 100 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg).
A blood oxygen level below 60 mm Hg is considered low and may require oxygen supplementation, depending on a doctor's decision and the individual case.
When blood oxygen level is too low compared to the average level of a healthy person, it can be a sign of a condition known as hypoxemia. This means that the body has difficulty delivering oxygen to all of its cells, tissues, and organs.
