Carbon monoxide connects to red blood cells, robbing your body of the oxygen it requires to survive. It combines with these cells more than 200 times more easily than oxygen, leading to a condition known as carboxyhemoglobin saturation.
Carbon monoxide, in place of oxygen, then gets brought to the vital organs through the bloodstream. In short, carbon monoxide deprives your body of oxygen. Organs have to have oxygen; without it, they begin to suffocate.
It takes your body a long time to get rid of carbon monoxide; however, it can be drawn in much more quickly.