# Human bodies produce 2 billion metric tons of CO2 a year just by staying alive

Source: [Earth & Climate News -- ScienceDaily](https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/11/261104012305.htm) · 2026-11-07 · Earth & Climate
Page: https://themorning.science/story/human-bodies-produce-2-billion-metric-tons-of-co2-a-year-just-by-staying-alive-413adeb247b05b7b
Kind: research · Impact: low

## In brief

- Humans collectively produce more than 2 billion tonnes of CO2 a year from turning food into energy.
- This is a 74% increase over three decades, largely driven by population growth.
- The exhaled CO2 is part of the natural carbon cycle, unlike fossil fuel emissions.

## Why it matters

It separates respiratory CO2 from fossil fuel emissions in the carbon budget, which matters for readers following climate accounting.

## Coverage

- [Human bodies produce 2 billion metric tons of CO2 a year just by staying alive](https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/11/261104012305.htm) — Earth & Climate News -- ScienceDaily, 2026-11-07

Tags: carbon cycle, co2 emissions, human metabolism, population growth, climate science

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Brief generated by AI (claude-haiku-5-5) from the reporting listed under Coverage. Headlines belong to their publishers. The Morning Science – https://themorning.science