Oxidation is a chemical reaction whereby electrons are transferred from one molecule to another. Oxygen molecules are frequently, but not always, involved in these reactions. The molecules that "donate" electrons are said to be oxidized, whereas the molecules that accept electrons are called oxidants.

  A healthy state of oxidative balance is necessary for optimal function of the body, but when the body is exposed to repeated environmental stresses, its oxidative function is weakened. Charles Farr, M.D., Ph.D., of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma states that when oxidation is partially blocked by toxicity in the body or pathological (disease-causing) organisms, oxidation therapy may help by "jump-starting" the body's oxidative processes and returning them to normal. When properly administered, oxidation therapy selectively destroys pathogenic (disease-producing) bacteria, viruses, and other invading microbial organisms, and deactivates toxic substances without injury to healthy tissues or cells. For instance, if diluted hydrogen peroxide is placed on a wound, the normal cells thrive while the pathogens die.

  Oxidation therapy may be given intravenously, orally, rectally by enema, vaginally, or transcutaneously (absorbed through the skin). Since uncontrolled oxidation may be destructive to the body, oxidation therapy must be administered under clinical supervision.

 

  Hydrogen peroxide is a liquid the molecular structure of which is made up of two atoms of hydrogen and two atoms of oxygen (H₂O₂). Because it is less stable than water (H₂0), hydrogen peroxide readily enters into oxidative reactions, ultimately becoming oxygen in water.

  Dr. Farr was  first  who characterized the oxidative effects of hydrogen peroxide in humans in 1984. Today, the use of hydrogen peroxide for its oxidative effects has spread to over thirty-eight countries, and remains one of the least expensive, yet effective oxidation therapies.

  Oxidation administered through hydrogen peroxide therapy regulates tissue repair, cellular respiration, growth, immune functions, the energy system, most hormone systems, and the production of cytokines (chemical messengers that are involved in the regulation of almost every system in the body). According to Dr. Farr, oxidation therapy can also work as a defense system, directly destroying invading bacteria, viruses, yeast, and parasites.

 

  Dr. Farr uses hydrogen peroxide for a variety of health problems, including AIDS, arthritis, cancer, candidiasis, chronic fatigue syndrome, depression, lupus erythematosus (a chronic inflammatory disease with symptoms including arthritis, fatigue, and skin lesions), emphysema, multiple sclerosis, varicose veins, and fractures.

  According to Dr. Farr, other conditions that may benefit from hydrogen peroxide therapy include arteriosclerosis, vascular headaches (migraines, cluster headaches) gangrene, strokes, allergies, asthma, lung infections, diabetes mellitus, herpes simplex, herpes zoster (shingles), fungal, bacterial, viral and parasitic infections, acne, and wounds. Hydrogen peroxide injections have been used for inflamed, damaged, and injured tissues, inflamed nerves such as in herpes, or trigger points causing pain and muscle spasms.

  Dr. Farr has demonstrated rapid recovery from Type A/Shanghai influenza with intravenous hydrogen peroxide treatments. Two-thirds of his patients recovered after only a single injection. One-third returned for a second injection and only 10 percent required a third. Recovery time was half that of a control group treated with conventional methods: antibiotics, decongestants, and analgesics.

  Robert Haskell, M.D., of San Rafael, California, treated a forty-four-year-old man with multiple sclerosis who was confined to a wheelchair. After six treatments of intravenous hydrogen peroxide he began taking a few steps and by the eighteenth treatment, he was able to walk for four hours without resting.

There are few side effects with hydrogen peroxide therapy: 

•  Inflammation of veins at the site of injection. 

•  Temporary faintness.

• Fatigue

• Headaches.

• Chest pain.

• Hydrogen peroxide taken orally causes nausea and vomiting, and rectal administration can lead to inflammation of the lower intestinal tract. 

  Dr. Farr reports, most problems stem from the use of either an inappropriate administration route, administration above patient tolerance, the mixingof oxidative chemicals with other substances, or using oxidative chemicals in too great a concentration.

 

  Ozone therapy relies on the process of oxidation as well as oxygenation. About one-fifth of the air humans breathe is comprised of two atoms of oxygen (O₂). Ozone (O₃) contains three oxygen atoms and is a less stable form of molecular oxygen. Because of this added molecule, ozone is more reactive than oxygen and readily enters into reactions to oxidize other chemicals. During oxidation in the body, the extra oxygen molecule in ozone breaks away, leaving a normal O₂ molecule. This increases the oxygen content of the blood or tissues. For this reason, ozone therapy is a combination of both oxygenation therapy and oxidation therapy.

  Ozone is a common substance in nature, but can also be a source of air pollution when produced by man-made combustion. Medical grade ozone is made from pure oxygen. According to Gerard Sunnen, M.D., of New York City. Used medically, ozone increases local oxygen supply to lesions, improves and accelerates wound healing, deactivates viruses and bacteria and increases local tissue temperature, thus enhancing local metabolic processes.

  Ozone can be administered intravenously, intra-arterially, intramuscularly (within the muscle), intra-articularly (into the joint), and subcutaneously. In the case of an intravenous or intramuscular injection, up to a quart of blood is removed from a vein and mixed with ozone gas, then reinjected into the body. Ozone may also be applied topically as a gas or dissolved in water or olive oil. As a gas it may be insufflated (blown in) vaginally or rectally. It may also be taken orally, rectally, or vaginally in the form of ozonated water.

  Laboratory studies have shown that ozone is capable of inactivating HIV in solution. It has also been shown to inhibit the growth of human lung, breast, and uterine cancer cells in tissue culture.

 

 Ozone therapy can treat many conditions. Below are the most typical methods of treatment:

• Intra-arterial (injected into an artery): For arterial circulatory disturbances and to dissolve arteriosclerotic plaque
• Intestinal insufflation (blown into the intestines from a gas tank using a catheter): For mucous colitis (fungal infection in the intestine) and fistulae (abnormal openings)
• Intramuscular (injected into the muscle): To treat inflammatory infections, allergic diseases, and cancer (with autohemotherapy)
• Autohemotherapy (ozonation of blood): To address arthritis, hepatitis, allergies, and herpes infections
• Ozonized water (ozonation of water that is taken orally, rectally, or vaginally): Disinfection during surgery and dentistry
• Intra-articular (injected into a joint): During surgery and with diseased joints
• External application (by covering the area with a tent and infusing ozone): For treating fungal infections, leg ulcers, infected or poorly healing wounds, and burns.

 

 

  Jonathan Wright, M.D., of Kent, Washington, believes ozone therapy very effective against any sort of chronic infection, particularly viruses and candidiasis. He also treats hepatitis B with ozonation of the blood along with an herbal remedy-Phyllanthus-and high doses of intravenous ascorbate (a salt of the ascorbic acid vitamin C). Dr. Wright says, one can't just use ozone alone, it should be combined with a proper diet, nutritional supplements, herbs, botanicals, acupuncture, and chiropractic. He adds that antioxidants (chemicals or substances that can donate, or give up, electrons) such as vitamin C should be given along with any oxidative therapy since they prevent uncontrolled oxidation which is detrimental to the body.

  Dr. Wright has successfully treated a cancer patient with ozone therapy. The patient had a goose egg-sized tumor on her right ear. Her doctor said it could not be treated and gave her six months to live. Dr. Wright treated the tumor with topical ozone (applied externally to the site of the tumor) and injected ozone directly into the tumor. The tumor regressed in size, and although a small lump remained, the patient recovered.

  Jeff Harris, N.D., of Seattle, Washington, successfully treated a patient suffering from multiple sclerosis (MS) with ozone therapy administered by rectal insufflation. When the patient came to see Dr. Harris, she had been unable to work effectively for seven years due to the deteriorating effects of MS, which included numbness in her right leg as well as incontinence, and had spent the last three months on unemployment. Dr. Harris also used vitamin and mineral supplementation, vegetarian diet, amalgam removal, counseling, and craniosacral therapy as part of the treatment protocol. She received vitamin B₁₂ and folic acid injections daily for two to three weeks and then ozone therapy was started. After the first ozone treatment, she said she felt full of energy. Dr. Harris taught her how to do the treatments herself, which she does daily, and she has now returned to work and states that she is feeling well and full of energy.

 

  The value of ozone therapy in veterinary medicine was discovered by accident while animal tests were being conducted to substantiate the hazards of ozone to humans. However, the results proved the positive effects of ozone/oxygen mixtures on the survival rate of animals, and researchers concluded that the results from the experiments constituted a critical item worthy of serious consideration.

  Ozone therapy can be used on animals to treat intestinal disorders, arthritis, canine paralysis, skin problems, acute and chronic cystitis, oncological disorders, and helminthiasis (intestinal parasites or worms). Ozone is a disinfectant to bacteria and germs, and causes inactivation of viruses and fungi. It is used by colonic insufflation for colitis and improves wound healing.

 

 

  The late German physician, Alexander Preuss, of Stuttgart, used ozone as part of a regimen including vitamins, minerals, and other treatments to enhance the immune system. He achieved remission in a number of patients with AIDS-associated infections. In a similar study, French researchers Bertrand Vallancien and Jean-Marie Winkler reported on a group of patients with HIV, herpes, and hepatitis. After nine weeks of transfused ozone, T4 and T8 cells (cells of the immune system) moved toward normal levels in all cases. The ozone treatments caused no further health problems.

  John Pittman, M.D., of Raleigh, North Carolina, treated nine HIV positive patients  with a regimen of ozone one day, hydrogen peroxide the next, and chelation therapy on the third day for twenty-three days (the study was then stopped for legal reasons). In patients whose T-cell count was greater than 100 initially, a 20 to 30% rise was seen. There was no effect on those with T-cell counts below 100 to start with. He believes ozone is helpful in AIDS because it is known to damage viruses which have a lot of fat in their membranes (HIV membranes have a high fat content). Healthy cells have antioxidant enzymes to break down ozone and prevent damage; viruses do not. He believes ozone may also stimulate the immune system.

  In the United States the FDA has not approved the practice of ozone therapy. Many physicians have been forced to use ozone therapy without calling attention to themselves, for fear of FDA reprisals. However, numerous patient anecdotes are available. One doctor reports of good results with HIV positive patients. He gave these patients three ozone treatments a week for seven weeks. For each treatment, 250 to 300 cc's of blood were removed, treated with ozone, and injected back into the patient. This helped reduce opportunistic infections. Other treatments were also used to help strengthen the immune system. Patients who have difficulty tolerating AZT (an AIDS medication) treatments may also benefit from ozone therapy.

  Dr. Wright also uses ozone therapy with AIDS patients by ozonating the blood and returning it to the patient, or by rectal insufflation. In 1985, he treated an HIV positive patient who was feverish and had swollen glands. The patient was given ozone twice a week for six months, along with vitamin and mineral supplements and botanicals. The patient's symptoms were greatly relieved, and he continues doing well, returning for ozone treatment whenever he has a fever or other symptoms.

  Ozone therapy is widely used and practiced in Europe, but still not readily available in the United States. According to Dr. Sunnen, prospective patients and doctors in America must await two further animal studies before the FDA sanctions a phase-one clinical trial with humans, and ultimately approves the therapeutic use of ozone.