Question

(a) Suppose a 50 kg female has 500 g of hemoglobin in her body. Is she anemic? Explain.

(b) Suppose you take a road trip from Los Angeles, CA to Death Valley, CA. The average occupancy of oxygen in your hemoglobin will: increase, decrease, or stay the same

Answer 1

(a) Suppose a 50 kg female has 500 g of hemoglobin in her body. Is she anemic? Explain.

In this case, remember that the normal range of hemoglobin in females is from 12 to 15.5 grams per blood deciliter. In this case, a woman with a weight of 50 Kg have an average of 3.7 L of blood which is 37 deciliters. If we multiply 37 deciliters by 12 grams of hemoglobin we will obtain 444 grams of hemoglobin. So, the female is not suffering from anemia.

(b) Suppose you take a road trip from Los Angeles, CA to Death Valley, CA. The average occupancy of oxygen in your hemoglobin will: increase, decrease, or stay the same

You are moving to a place with a higher altitude. When we are in high altitude, the red blood cell concentration in our blood increases and the average occupancy of oxygen in your hemoglobin will increase.