Ask anyone about the air we breathe, and chances are they’ll start telling you about oxygen. Though it may seem otherwise, oxygen is actually only 20% of the air that we breathe. [1]
By extracting other chemicals from the air that surrounds us, we get pure oxygen. Pure oxygen is a versatile chemical that comes with many exciting industrial and medical possibilities.
How Is Pure Oxygen Currently Used In Society?
For Home Oxygen Therapy
The most common use for oxygen has to be home oxygen therapy. Most people use portable oxygen concentrators [2] to undergo oxygen therapy within the comfort of their homes. Home oxygen therapy is a crucial part of ongoing care for conditions such as COPD, Pulmonary Fibrosis or severe Asthma.
In Hospitals
Oxygen is versatile and is used to address a wide array of symptoms. Medical professionals use oxygen for major physical trauma, resuscitation efforts and when a patient has gone into shock.
In Manufacturing & Other Industries
Believe it or not, pure oxygen is actually used in skilled trade professions. Oxy-fuel welding and oxy-fuel cutting are examples of techniques that use oxygen. Oxygen based fires burn at a much higher temperature than regular flames.
The high temperatures of oxygen fires allow humans to work with materials like diamonds that are impossible to work with in their original forms. Oxy-fuel equipment is popular in the glass industry and automotive collision industry.
What Else Can Oxygen Do?
Have you heard of hyperbaric oxygen therapy? Hyperbaric therapy is an exciting way to use oxygen to heal the human body. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy enhances your body’s natural healing abilities by enclosing you in a chamber of 100% oxygen.
Currently, hyperbaric oxygen therapy is used to treat thermal burns, recover from decompression sickness and for treating carbon monoxide poisoning.
What’s exciting about hyperbaric treatments is that a lot of professionals feel we’ve barely scratched the surface of what hyperbaric therapy can do for our health.
Neurological Benefits For Veterans
The medical community is slowly starting to recognize the benefits of oxygen therapy on the brain.
According to NorthStar Hyperbaric’s website [3]: “On a basic level, over multiple hyperbaric oxygen therapy treatments, oxygen flow stimulates the body’s natural healing processes at the cellular level, plus it promotes the release of stem cells from the bone marrow.”
Many US marine and army veterans use hyperbaric oxygen therapy to deal with mental conditions such as PTSD and Hypervigilance. Hyperbaric therapy has the potential to help millions of people who are in mental anguish find relief without resorting to drugs.
One of the main reasons oxygen needs to be formally acknowledged by the medical community is to lower the costs of these treatments. While many veterans are on record as finding the treatments helpful, 80 sessions cost around $10,000. Lowering the entry barrier for hyperbaric oxygen therapy will be an amazing way to promote a natural treatment for mental health.
High Potential For Aiding Concussion Recovery
In addition to mental health, hyperbaric therapy also has the potential to assist in recovering from physical trauma. Many NFL players such as former QB Joe Namath speak highly in regards to using hyperbaric therapy as a part of concussion treatments. [4]
Contact sports like American Football are always under scrutiny for how injured players are treated once they retire. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy has the potential to eliminate the development of brain conditions that have claimed the lives of many former players.
In the future, the NFL, NHL and other professional sporting leagues may start to include hyperbaric oxygen therapy as a part of their mandatory concussion protocols.
Should You Include Oxygen In Your Life?
There’s a possibility that some day in the future, inhaling oxygen will be compared to popping a multivitamin. Right now, most people that use oxygen are professional athletes or individuals who need it for their health.
There’s still a societal stigma on people who use oxygen for non-medical reasons. However, there’s a growing community of people who swear by their recreational oxygen use and recommend it for everyone.
Oxygen Bars
Oxygen bars are a somewhat new phenomenon with the first official oxygen bar opening in 1996. [5] Similar to a hookah bar (but ironically much healthier), you can enjoy oxygen in different scents while enjoying food and conversation with your friends.
A lot of people claim their visits to oxygen bars have a powerful effect on their health. The most common benefits people notice is the additional oxygen strengthens their immune system, reduces stress and is great for treating sinus problems.
Another way to enjoy oxygen recreationally is with portable oxygen canisters. Some companies sell canisters that contain pure oxygen for recreational use. While the medical community hasn’t acknowledged these devices yet, many people claim they are amazing for their health.
Summary
All in all, we’re still in the discovery stage when it comes to using oxygen. Going forward, the ability of oxygen to heal the brain will be a huge push for oxygen becoming a normalized treatment. It might even become common practice to inhale oxygen before a physical event, before a test or while you are sick. The possibilities are endless!
References:
[1] Sceincing.com – https://sciencing.com/minimum-oxygen-concentration-human-breathing-15546.html
[2] DMELibrary.com – https://dmelibrary.com/portable-oxygen-supply/
[3] North Star Hyperbaric – https://northstarhbot.com/faqs/
[4] Long Island Press – https://www.longislandpress.com/2017/03/26/former-jets-namath-martin-raise-awareness-about-head-injuries/
[5] O2 Spa & Bar – https://o2spabar.com/about-us/
