Ozone Therapy: Uncovering The Pros + Cons Of This Unique Wellness Tool

What is ozone therapy?

Ozone therapy is an alternative treatment that involves administering ozone gas into your body in order to achieve a variety of health benefits. Ozone (O3) is a molecule composed of three oxygen atoms, whereas the oxygen we breathe (O2) consists of two oxygen atoms. Since ozone is a highly reactive molecule that can have both beneficial and harmful effects, depending on its concentration, how it's used, your individual health case, and whether or not it is properly administered, ozone therapy is a topic of debate in both mainstream and holistic medicine.

There are several ways that ozone therapy can be administered, including:

1. Ozone injection

This is no doubt one of the most popular methods of ozone therapy. Ozone gas is injected into your bloodstream, joints, or muscles, in a process known as autohemotherapy, where your blood is drawn, mixed with ozone, and then reinfused into your body.

2. Ozone sauna

In this method, you are placed in a sauna where ozone gas is introduced through your skin or respiratory system.

3. Ozone ozonated olive oil

Unlike other forms of olive oil that are meant to be ingested, ozone ozonated olive oil is designed to be used topically. In this method, ozone is bubbled through olive oil to create an ozonated oil that can be used to help treat various skin conditions including helping to repair damaged skin from wounds or burns.

4. Ozone insufflation

Another method of ozone therapy is ozone insufflation where ozone gas is administered into your body through various orifices, such as your rectum (rectal insufflation) or ear (auricular insufflation). 

What are the health benefits of ozone therapy?

In order to understand how ozone therapy can benefit your health, we need to first look at the mechanisms behind ozone therapy and how it works within your body.

1. Improves oxygenation

Ozone therapy helps to improve oxygen utilization in the body. Ozone molecules release oxygen into tissues to enhance circulation, cellular metabolism, and energy production. This is especially important as your cells influence every aspect of your health.

2. Modulates your immune system

Recent studies (1) have shown that ozone therapy can help regulate your immune system, which can be beneficial in cases where the immune system is either overactive as in autoimmune diseases or compromised as in chronic infections.

2. Lowers inflammation

Chronic inflammation is the root cause of most of our modern day health problems. Everything from weight gain, heart disease, autoimmune conditions, and even cancer can be traced back to out-of-control inflammation. Ozone therapy has been shown to help lower inflammation (2) in a variety of different conditions by down-regulating pro-inflammatory compounds.

3. Enhances antioxidant activity

Ozone therapy has been shown to enhance antioxidant activity (3) in your body to help protect cells from oxidative stress (4) and damage.

4. Fights infections

Ozone has potent antimicrobial properties (5) and is used in some cases for treating (6) infections, even when antibiotic resistance is present. 

Clinical applications of ozone therapy

Now that we understand the mechanisms behind ozone therapy and how it can positively affect your health, let’s take a closer look at some key studies that have contributed to our understanding of ozone therapy for a variety of conditions.

1. Chronic pain and autoimmunity

Chronic pain conditions, such as osteoarthritis and fibromyalgia, can be debilitating. Ozone therapy, when administered through injection or local application, has demonstrated significant pain reduction in several clinical trials. One study published in Inflammation (7) found that ozone therapy was able to significantly reduce pro-inflammatory cytokines in patients in rheumatoid arthritis, resulting in alleviated pain and a significant improvement in symptoms.

2. Lung health

Initial research suggests that ozone therapy's anti-inflammatory properties can help mitigate chronic airway inflammation to significantly improve lung diseases like asthma. (8)

3. Immune function

In a study published in the Journal of Ozone Therapy, (9) researchers found that ozone therapy both improved immune function and reduced the viral load in patients with HIV and AIDS over a 2-year period. While more research is needed in this area, this study shows great promise for managing this chronic, life-long disease with ozone therapy.

4. Wound healing

Ozone therapy has been linked to its ability to speed up wound healing due to its role in enhancing oxygenation, stimulating antioxidant enzymes, and fighting inflammation which all work together to promote tissue regeneration. One study (10) showed that ozone therapy was even able to help improve the healing rate of diabetic foot ulcers - a wound that has a notoriously difficult time healing.

Things to consider

Currently, ozone therapy is a subject of debate in the medical community as many mainstream organizations, such as the FDA and the American Medical Association, don’t recommend it or recognize it as a legitimate medical treatment. This is likely due to the fact that there aren’t many recent or long-term studies surrounding its effectiveness. But with that said, the studies that have been done, along with anecdotal evidence, show great promise for ozone therapy in the future with more research being done to look at this therapy.

Before trying ozone therapy for yourself, be sure to talk with your doctor as there are significant risks associated with ozone therapy, including the potential for lung irritation, inflammation, and oxidative stress when not administered properly or at excessive concentrations. Iit is important to note though that when administered properly, the side effects of ozone therapy are extremely minimal if at all. 

There are a handful of exciting new companies whose goal it is to make ozone therapy more accessible with at-home ozone therapy treatments. One of my favorite companies is Simply O3 that provide education and complete ozone therapy kits that you can use in the comfort of your own home.

Learn more about Simply O3 and get 10% off your order with the code DRWILLCOLE at checkout.

The takeaway

While more research needs to be done on ozone therapy and its full potential, the current research around this therapy is worth noting. From alleviating chronic pain to boosting your immune system and fighting inflammation, evidence currently positions ozone therapy as a game-changer for treating multiple chronic conditions more naturally with minimal side effects. 

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