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why do you die as soon as your heart stops?
- Thread starter Eddi
- Start date
Who told you death occurs the moment the heart stops?
Brain activity can go on for several minutes after the heart stops beating. A person can live on bypass for an extended period of time.
A person isn't clinically dead until the heart and respiration stops.
Brain activity can go on for several minutes after the heart stops beating. A person can live on bypass for an extended period of time.
A person isn't clinically dead until the heart and respiration stops.
You don't. Death is a process, not a single point in time.
But why if my heart stopped beating would I lose consciousness and not be able to walk about and do stuff or hold a conversation?
Your brain needs oxygen to stay conscious. Your blood circulation is what gets it there, and the heart pumps the blood.
While there is still oxygen in your blood to feed the brain you are still alive.
If your heart wasn't beating, you would lose consciousness very quickly, yes.
Losing consciousness <> brain activity ceasing.
When your heart pumps blood throughout your body the blood transports oxygen throughout your body.
Without the heart the oxygen can't get from your lungs from the parts in your body that need it to move.
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But why does it need a constant oxygen supply?
I mean it's a bit rubbish if it can't go without for a few moments
Most of the cells in your body need a constant supply of oxygen to remain alive. Without oxygen, they start dying straight away.
Well, that's not very good!
Yeah, it's one of the sucky things about dying. Although I can't say that from first-hand experience.
Your brain consumes about 20% of all the oxygen your body uses. For a 170 lb man, that means 4 lbs of it (a bit over 2%) of your body weight consumes 20% of necessary oxygen. You can see that it will very quickly run out onces your blood stops pumping.
peanutlove
Member
There's a possibility that you still be resuscitated when your heart stops.
Altfish
Veteran Member
People who have heart failure can be revived, CPR works. Defibrillators work.
Actual death seems to be rather a grey area, so do a search as to the longest time anyone has survived after apparently being (or should have been) dead. Such often being related to cold conditions too. The heartbeat or breathing often don't seem to be sufficient criteria as indicators of death.
Twilight Hue
Twilight, not bright nor dark, good nor bad.
That's why the definition of death is more associated with brain death than anything else although technically even if you are actually dead your body can still live for a little while even though the mind is gone.
Yes, but some seem to be talking as to minutes when hours are so often involved in some survival situations - and as to recovery being possible.
Dementia is caused by shortages of oxygen to the brain which can be the result of heart disease or stroke. If there is a complete shutdown of the oxygen supply, as when the heart stops, you have a short day ahead of you if you don't get emergency help.