When it comes to health and healing, oxygen is a super important nutrient our bodies need. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) reveals how this essential element can work wonders, helping people recover and function better in their daily lives. In this article, we’ll explore what HBOT is all about and why sometimes we need more oxygen than our bodies naturally provide.
The Importance of Oxygen
We often don’t think about it, but oxygen is crucial for life. We breathe it in every day. While we can go without food for weeks and without water for days, we can’t survive without oxygen for more than a few minutes.
But why would we need extra oxygen sometimes? To explain, think about other important nutrients. Normally, we have enough of these nutrients to go about our daily activities. However, in certain situations, we might take a big dose of them, like loading up on vitamin C when we have a cold.
Understanding Oxygen Levels
With oxygen, it’s a bit different. Our red blood cells can only carry and deliver a limited amount of oxygen to our body’s tissues, and they’re always working at full capacity, carrying 100% of the oxygen they can. There’s no natural way to increase this capacity unless we change the pressure.
The Solution: Hyperbaric Therapy
That’s where the hyperbaric chamber comes in. Unless there are issues with our lungs, our bodies usually work with an oxygen capacity between 97% and 100%. This means that when we’re dealing with conditions like concussions, Lyme disease, neuropathy, or developmental disorders, our bodies are already using all the available oxygen for basic functions, leaving none for healing. HBOT provides an extra dose of oxygen, like a super boost, to help with the healing process.
A Relaxing Healing Experience
HBOT is a comfortable and relaxing treatment. Patients lie down in a chamber that’s about 7 feet long and a bit over two and a half feet wide. It’s filled with regular air, so you can bring your phone, computer, tablet, or a good book, or simply take a nap. During a session, you breathe normally, and sessions usually last one to two hours. The number of sessions depends on each patient’s individual treatment plan.
HBOT does much more than treat divers with decompression sickness. By increasing the amount of oxygen in your blood, it fights inflammation, helps create new blood vessels, kills bacteria and germs, releases stem cells, improves the function of white blood cells, and boosts the immune system. These changes in the body are the key to healing a wide range of conditions.
Conclusion
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) is incredibly valuable for brain and nervous system healing, benefiting patients with conditions like MS, dysautonomia, migraines, concussions, Lyme disease, and neurodevelopmental disorders, who have reported significant improvements after HBOT sessions
Source
Carolina Functional Neurological Center. Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Benefits. https://www.carolinafnc.com/post/hyperbaric-oxygen-therapy-benefits
