A Review of the Use of Oz One in Healthcare

INTRODUCTION

Ozone (O₃) gas was first described in 1785 by a Dutch chemist,Martinus Van Marum. It was named in 1840 by Christian Schönbein, a German-Swiss chemist. The gas is a molecule consisting of three atoms of oxygen. It is a very unstable gas, quickly breaking down into oxygen and releasing a single oxygen atom that is very reactive. Ozone must be created at the point of usage, as it cannot be stored. There are a considerable number of published papers in the scientific literature that illustrates the wide range of therapeutic effects ozone can have and it has uses in medical, dental, veterinary and industrial applications. Ozone gas in high concentrations hasdangerous effects on lung and skin and should only be applied by suitably trained healthcare workers. Ozone therapy has been utilised and studied since the mid 1800’s. Its effects are proven,consistent, safe and with minimal unwanted side effects. Medical ozone is used to disinfect and treat disease. It’s mechanism of action is by the rapid inactivation of bacteria, viruses, fungi, yeastand protozoa, stimulation of oxygen metabolism, and activation of the immune system in animals and humans. There are a number ofdifferent application techniques, such as treating external wounds by transcutaneous bagging, washing with ozonated water or theuse of a soap made from ozone treated plant extracts. Another example would be the use of ozonated water and plant oils, the use of which is particularly useful in dental and medical applications, applied as a spray, wash or by direct placement on a wound or treatment area. Diseases that can be effectively managed and treated include infected wounds, dental decay, gum disease, hard and soft tissue healing, circulatory disorders, geriatric conditions, macular degeneration, viral diseases, rheumatism, arthritis, cancer,SARS and AIDS.

ABOUT OZONE

Ozone (O₃) gas was discovered in 1785 by a Dutch chemist, Martinus Van Marum. It was named in 1840 by Christian Schönbein, a German- Swiss chemist. It is a molecule consisting of three atoms of oxygen in an unstable structure. The gas is pale blue in colour, has a distinctodour and can be explosive in liquid or solid form. It has a half-lifeof about 20minutes at room temperature and pressure. It is found at high altitude where it has a protective role for all life forms and is known as the ozone layer, where it filters out harmful effects of UV radiation. Ozone is found in low concentrations at ground level andis more noticeable after thunder storms, by the sea side, and has been found to be released in geological events.¹

Although O3 can attack lung tissue, researchers have shown in numerous published articles and scientific papers that it has many positive therapeutic effects.^2-4 Indeed, some researchers have described ozone as the ultimate ‘Janus’. Janus is the Roman god of gates and doors, beginnings and endings, and hence represented with a double-faced head, each looking in opposite directions. In the context of ozone, on one face ozone can cause severe problems with lung tissue, yet on the other face ozone can act in synergy with pharmaceuticals or alone to set up accelerated healing and health.³ The recent manufacture of calibrated medical ozone generators now allows the mechanisms, action and possible toxicity of O₃ to be evaluated in clinical trials.³ Ozone has a capacity to oxidize organic compounds,⁵ and has well-known toxic effects on the human respiratory tract when present in smog.^6-8 In medical uses ozone gas is produced from medical grade oxygen, and is administered in precise therapeutic doses, never via direct inhalation, and advocates report that it has excellent general health benefits, with uses in the treatment of dental caries, decreased blood cholesterol and stimulation of antioxidative responses, increased oxygenation in resting muscle and is used in complementary treatment of hypoxic and ischemic syndromes.^9-11 However a large number of unsubstantiated claims are made on the world wide web and in general advertising that have dubious scientific validity at best. For example, there is no scientific evidence to show ozone treatmentleads to weight-loss. Hence a number of ozone associations havebeen setup to counter these false claims, inform the public and train individuals to offer and deliver safe and effective treatment.

HISTORY OF OZONE TREATMENT

Ozone therapy has been utilised and extensively studied for many decades. Its reported effects are proven, consistent and with minimal side effects. Medical ozone, used to disinfect tissues and treat disease, has been used for over 150 years. It’s use to treat infections, wounds and multiple diseases, and ozone’s effectiveness has been well-documented in the scientific literature. It has been used to disinfect drinking water since the late 1800’s and now ozone disinfection of drinking water can be found in virtually every country in the world. In the early 1900’s ozone was used to treat over 100 diseases, and published papers exist as far back as 1902 with a more general discussion in the 1895 Florida Medical Journal.¹²

During the first world war ozone was used to treat infected wounds and discovered O₃ not only remedied infection, but also had hemodynamic and anti-inflammatory properties.¹³ In the late 1980s as HIV and AIDS was first reported, ozone autohemotherapy, O₃- AHT, treatment for AIDS patients was reported.¹⁴ Ozone showed promise in laboratory tests to treat AIDS. Unfortunately O₃-AHT proved to be less effective when patients were treated with the protocol used at that time.¹⁴ However more recent work has shown promising results.

The unique bio-compatible properties of ozone suggest a possible role in the treatment of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). SARS is a viral respiratory disease in humans caused by the SARS coronavirus. Ozone could be used either as a stand-alone therapy or as an adjunct to standard treatment regimens, and owing to the reactivity of ozone, it is possible ozone will be effective across the entire SARS virus group.¹⁵ The same would apply to avian-flu virus that has seen a recent recurrence.

Ozone can also be used to treat cancers successfully.^16-19 Published papers show successful treatment of a wide variety of cancers, and up until the 1950’s, ozone was the treatment of choice in the USA. There are a growing number of clinicians in the USA who use a combination of diet supplementation, life-style changes and ozone in a combined treatment for cancer.

HOW OZONE WORKS

Inactivation of bacteria, viruses, fungi, yeast and protozoa: Ozone therapy disrupts the bacterial cell wall through oxidation. In fungi, O₃ inhibits cell growth at certain stages. With viruses, O₃ damages the viral outer protective shell called the ‘capsid’ and halts the reproductive cycle by a process called peroxidation. The weak enzyme coatings on cells which make them vulnerable to invasion by viruses make them susceptible to oxidation and elimination from the body, which then replaces them with healthy cells.¹⁸

Stimulation of oxygen metabolism: Ozone therapy causes an increase in the red blood cell glycolysis rate. This leads to the stimulation of 2,3-diphosphoglycerate which leads to an increase in the amount of oxygen released to the tissues. Ozone activates the Krebs cycle to boost the production of cell energy. There is a stimulation of production of enzymes which act as free radical scavengers and cell-wall protectors and prostacyline, a vasodilator, is also induced by O₃.¹⁹

Activation of the immune system: Ozone administered at a concentration of between 30 and 55 μg/cc causes the greatest increase in the production of interferon and the greatest output of tumor necrosis factor (an important part to ozone treatment of cancers) and interleukin-2. The production of interleukin-2 launches an entire cascade of immunological reactions.¹⁹

Mechanism of action of O3 on the human lung: Ozone exposure at high concentrations induces an asthmatic-type of response with sudden inflammation of the airway tissues. Patients can experience a cough, decreased lung function, shortness of breath, and breathing difficulty.¹⁹

Clinical Trials with Ozone;

When ozone is used as part of a treatment protocol for chronic pulmonary obstructive disease (COPD), and cystic fibrosis, the results showed better results when ozone was administered just before drug administration, and Ozone was shown to enhance the drug effects. ²⁰

Ozone injected into joints has been used for pain control in osteoarthritis of the knee, shoulder and arm joints, and for lumbarherniated disc. ^21-22

Advantages of Ozone Treatment;

Diabetic complications have been attributed to the oxidative stress in the body. Ozone has been found to activate the antioxidant system affecting the level of glycemia or sugars in the blood. Ozone prevented oxidative stress by normalising the organic peroxide levels by activating superoxide dismutase.^23-24 Ozone was found to completely inactivate the HIV virus in laboratory experiments, without causing damage the host cells.^14-25 Ozone was also found to increase the host immunity by increasing the production of cytokine.²⁶ In one laboratory studyO₃ was seen to be very effective in reducing the concentrations of Acinetobacter baumannii, Clostridium difficile and methicillinresistant Staphylococcus aureus in dry and wet samples; this and other studies support the use of ozone’s as a disinfectant.^27-28 In another study, when a low ozone concentration was used in air conditioning and in individual rooms, the incidence of flu and cold infections fell.²⁹ Ozone is now used for sterilisation in purpose-builtunits in some Canadian hospitals. When ozone is introduced into a steam chamber, the action of heat and moisture can lead to a deep tissue clean and detoxification. One significant advantage of ozone treatment is that unwanted side-effects usually found with standard pharmaceutical drugs are not seen. Routine drugs have a high rate of hospitalisation and death due to both side effects, interactions with other medication, and poor patient compliance. This makes ozone probably the safest treatment that can be offered.

Disadvantages of ozone treatment;

If ozone is inhaled, fats known as lipids in the lung tissue react with ozone, to cause sudden inflammation. This effect can be mild resulting in a cough, or more severe leading to breathlessness and an asthmatic-like attack.^6,27-28 Enzyme inactivation by ozone can result in cell injury or eventual cell death. Combinations of ozone and nitrous oxide that occur in air pollution and smog can create hazardous conditions for people in cities and industrial areas.^30-31 Whilst this is nature’s way to cleanse polluted air, this is often cited as a reason to ban ozone units in some countries. It is stressed that medical ozone is very different from the ozone found in smog & air pollution. Lung tissue and cell damage can be prevented and reversed by dietary antioxidants or free radical scavengers, like vitamin E and C. ^32-33

Recent Developments in Ozone Research;

Recent research has shown that ozone is produced as part of the body’s defence mechanism in humans. This has been confirmed by subsequent research.^34-35 The role of ozone as a human cell disinfectant and as part of the bodies defence against bacteria, fungi and viruses is confirmed. Ozone is used as an antibacterial agent to treat oral infections caused by Actinomyces naeslundii, Lactobacilli casei and Streptococcus mutans. Exposure of about 60 seconds showed a 99.9% killing efficiency. It has been used to stop the process of dental decay which can lead to remineralisation and relief of dental pain.⁹ When ozone is dissolved in plant oils, it produces a thick gellike product, and this has found to be an effective and easy to apply anti-microbial agent.³⁶ This new product contains ‘ozonoids’, and these are used to treat infection, accelerate the healing of bone and soft tissue, and skin regeneration in medical, dental and veterinarian applications.^36-44 Ozone is used to manage agricultural waste water and is used to destroy growth hormones, used to accelerate animal maturity, before these bio-chemicals enter and pollute ground water.^45-46 In a preliminary report of new HIV research with ozone oils, a reduction in the viral count from 62000 to 3100 in just 6 weeks was observed, with a substantial boot to the CD4 count, indicating that not only was the HIV virus controlled, but the patient’s immune system shows signs of recovery & support.⁴⁷ Ozone can be incorporated into various treatment options; for example, ozonated water can be used in colonic irrigation treatment, flotation and steam chambers. The use of micro-encapsulation of these oils in skin creams opens a new potential in active tissue healing.

CONCLUSION

Ozone has a long history of use in healthcare. In the 1890s, Willoughby Miller proposed that oral micro-organisms found in dental cavities played a role in pulmonary diseases, gastric problems, and brain abscesses, as well as many other medical conditions.⁴⁸ Miller went on to propose that the majority of systemic illnesses seen in man could be related to the oral cavity.

Research from the late 1800’s up to recent months shows the treatment is safe, has virtually no unwanted side effects, and can be used to treat a wide range of disease. Recent research is showing a strong link between infections in the mouth and age-related disease such as Alzheimer’s and dementia. Viral infections such as Herpes can be effectively controlled, as it is now known that certain cancers have a connection to viruses that can be treated and eliminated with ozone.^49-53 Research has documented the mechanisms of action and interaction of ozone with infective organisms in human cells. There are concerns with high concentrations of ozone and lung tissue damage. However, like every other pill, tablet, capsule or liquid pharmaceutical product, when used and administered by trained healthcare clinicians and therapists, and provided the public follow the recommended treatment protocols, ozone probably provides the safest treatment option for a wide range of disease and promotes general health.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr Julian Holmes lives in Cape Town with his partner Ingrid and their two dogs. Julian qualified first as a dentist over 30 years ago in the UK before his research took him into more general healthcare. He has been involved in ozone clinical care and research for over 20 years. He has some 70 scientific articles and papers published on ozone and it’s use in healthcare, and lectures world-wide. Some of his papers and articles can be found on www.the-o-zone.cc. Julian is the current President of the International Association for Ozone in Healthcare and Dentistry (www.iaohd.org), and leads the International Academy where healthcare workers are trained to use ozone safely and offered ozone courses; he isinvolved in setting up a teaching institute in Aruba with other leading US ozone clinicians. He is an active member of the Ozone Association of SouthAfrica (www.ozoneassociationsa.co.za/) and will be presenting some of his research at OASA’s meeting in Johannesburg, 19-20 September 2013 with other international speakers – contact OASA Chairlady Michelle Nicolopulos michelle.nicolopulos@gmail.com for details and to book your place at this important meeting, which is open for anyone who is involved in the use of ozone. Julian Holmes offers ozone treatment at Ubuntu Medi-Spa, Kloof Street, Cape Town (www.ubuntu-wellness.co.za) and formulates and manufactures a range of ozone products and organic skin creams that are available through GCE www.greycellenterprises.com. Julian’s hobbies are walking, electronics, house renovation, cooking and healthcare.If you want to ask questions on this article or have other healthrelated questions, you can contact Julian at drjulianholmes@gmail. com.