Does carbon dioxide support life?

Carbon dioxide does not support life in the way that oxygen does. While carbon dioxide is a crucial component of the Earth's atmosphere and plays an important role in photosynthesis for plants, it is not a gas that living beings can use to breathe. In fact, high concentrations of carbon dioxide can be harmful and even lethal to humans and animals.

Oxygen is essential for the process of respiration, where organisms convert nutrients into energy, while carbon dioxide is a byproduct of that metabolic process. While small amounts of carbon dioxide are a normal part of the respiratory cycle, it does not provide the necessary energy or support for life as oxygen does. This is why stating that carbon dioxide supports life is not accurate. Instead, it is more accurate to understand that carbon dioxide is a byproduct of life processes rather than a supporter of life itself.