Final answer:
The administration of 100 percent oxygen counteracts carbon monoxide poisoning by displacing CO from hemoglobin, which allows oxygen to be delivered to the body's tissues. Administering carbon dioxide wouldn't help and could worsen symptoms, as it does not displace carbon monoxide from hemoglobin.
Step-by-step explanation:
How Oxygen Therapy Treats Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
When a patient experiences carbon monoxide poisoning, the carbon monoxide (CO) binds with a very high affinity to the hemoglobin in the red blood cells, much more so than oxygen. This bond forms carboxyhemoglobin and prevents oxygen from binding, resulting in decreased oxygen delivery to the body's tissues. The administration of 100 percent oxygen to the patient can effectively displace the carbon monoxide from the hemoglobin. This is because the high concentration of oxygen increases the rate at which oxygen competes with carbon monoxide to bind with hemoglobin, thereby promoting the release of carbon monoxide.
On the contrary, administering carbon dioxide (CO2) would not have a beneficial effect. While CO2 does bind to hemoglobin, it forms a different compound (bicarbonate) which is part of the body's normal physiological process to manage pH levels in the blood. However, in the context of carbon monoxide poisoning, carbon dioxide would not aid in displacing CO from hemoglobin and would not alleviate the condition, and could actually worsen the patient's symptoms by exacerbating the body's already compromised oxygen delivery system.