You know of ozone as the layer in the earth’s atmosphere, and when combined with smog a contributor to air pollution. Ozone is also a healing medical gas used for supporting the body in a variety of ways. I want to share this information with you because ozone is a powerful tool for health. Before we dive in, a heads up. I do go into some biochemistry don’t let that get in the way. The bottom line is to see the benefit of ozone therapy and why it works!
IS OZONE A NEW THERAPY?
No! Ozone was first discovered in the 1800’s and started being used as a water purifier in the late 1800’s. Nikola Tesla patented the first ozone generator in 1896 and from there the use of medical ozone expanded. It was proven safe and effective for disinfection and treating disease. Ozone’s “mechanism of actions are by inactivation of bacteria, viruses, fungi, yeast and protozoa, stimulation of oxygen metabolism, and activation of the immune system.” (1) So you can see it is a great anti-microbial treatment and an activator of the immune system – a real double whammy!
STIMULATION OF OXYGEN METABOLISM IS WHERE THE USE OF OZONE GETS REALLY INTERESTING.
Oxygen is incredibly important in the body. Lowered body oxygen usage leads to aging, chronic disease, excessive free radical production, organ breakdown and degenerative disease. (Here’s the biochemistry part) It also leads to a decrease in NAD/NADH ratio. What this means is that when you have low oxygen your body isn’t able to make ATP as effectively. ATP is the energy currency of your cells. NAD is the currency that helps make ATP so the more NAD you have the more ATP. The more ATP the better your cells function and the better you feel. NADH is the weaker way to make ATP so your body prefers to have NAD because you get more bang for your buck.
HOW TO GET MORE NAD
When you blood or body is exposed to ozone it forms what is called a peroxide known as ozonides. These ozonides increase the amount of NAD vs. NADH which means your body can make more energy! These ozonides are also active for days to weeks and can easily pass through the cell membrane which means one ozone treatment can last for a while leading to better health!! So ozone increases NAD which increases ATP which means more energy.
THE BENEFITS OF OZONE THERAPY
- The body uses oxygen more effectively
- Increases ATP (energy) production by as much as 40%
- Enhances blood flow
- Balances the immune system
- Increases anti-oxidant function
- Gets oxygen to cells better
- Anti-bacterial – selective for anaerobes (don’t use oxygen to survive)
- Anti-fungal
- Anti-viral
- No resistance
- Enhances chemotherapy and radiation
- Reduces inflammation
- Protects against neurodegeneration
- Anti-tumorgenic (prevents tumors form forming)
- Promotes apoptosis (programmed cell death which prevents cancer cells from growing)
- Increases detoxification
- Decreases blood cholesterol
- Decreases dental caries (I go to a dentist that uses ozone regularly)
- Promotes longevity!!
An important thing to note is that OZONE DOES NOT FORM FREE RADICALS when used in the methods that I utilize in the office. The side effects are avoidable – the main one being do not inhale ozone gas directly, it is irritating to the lungs. People that should not use ozone are those with hyperthyroid function.
USE OZONE!
As you can see from the above list, ozone has many amazing effects in the body. If I had only one treatment that I could use it would be ozone because it improves oxygenation in the cells. Decreased oxygenation is a primary cause of disease so why not support your body with ozone?!
Next time I’ll talk about the different ways to use ozone therapy both at home and in the office.
