Oxygen saturation as a hypotoxia indicator for students living in the Northern regions

The paper presents the results of the functional study held by the authors. During the study, the researchers examined the students of the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Geography at Nizhnevartovsk State University to identify hypoxic states of the human body. The study included an analysis of blood oxygen saturation, identification of the ways the autonomic nervous system regulates the cardiovascular system of the body, as well as identification of hypoxia risk factors for young people living in the Northern regions of Russia. The data on surveyed students of both sexes showed that the average values of blood oxygen saturation were within the norm, with no significant gender differences. After evaluating heart rate variability, the students were divided into three groups, including eutonic, sympathotonic and parasympathotonic students. As for the group of students with a predominant activity of the parasympathetic regulation of autonomic nervous system, the number of students with normal levels of blood oxygen saturation was higher in comparison with the group of sympathotonic students. The study helped to reveal the basic hypoxia risk factors for students living in the Northern regions, such as smoking, including passive smoking; genetic predisposition to respiratory diseases; anemia; chronic diseases and low resistance leading to additional load on the respiratory system; low physical activity; short period spent in the Northern conditions.