Health Benefits of Angelica

The spread of COVID-19 caused a sharp spike in the sale of pulse oximeters, those little electronic devices we slip onto your finger when you’re at the hospital. A pulse oximeter measures the saturation of oxygen in your red blood cells by shining light through your fingertip and reading how much is absorbed, with a normal range usually between 95 and 100.
It’s a handy little device that tells us something about how your body is functioning. But if you, like countless panicked Americans, are considering buying one for home use.
There are times when home monitoring is necessary, and patients who have significant chronic lung disease or are dependent on oxygen should be tracking their levels. But this is part of their greater plan of care supervised by a doctor.
While a pulse oximeter may help you feel some measure of control over your health it’s a number you can look at and understand fairly easily it doesn’t tell a complete story.
There are plenty of people who feel terrible despite excellent pulse oximetry levels. The reverse is true as well. At the hospital, we don’t use a pulse oximeter as the only measure of health, and neither should you.
Pay the most attention to your symptoms: Are you feeling severely ill? Struggling to breathe? Seek medical attention no matter what your finger is telling you.
That said, certain pulse oximetry levels can be cause for concern. If you have a pulse oximeter and find your numbers dipping below 90, you should probably be seen by a doctor.
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