Oxygen therapy: main types and effects on the body. Pure oxygen for breathing benefits and harms If you inhale pure oxygen

The history of mankind is more than two thousand years old. But the history of the Earth, the place where people live, began much earlier, about 4 billion years ago. It was then that life appeared on the planet. At first, only plants lived on Earth, but then invertebrates and vertebrates began to appear. Around 65 million years ago, many mammals evolved, and some ape-like animals acquired the ability to walk upright. It was from these animals that man subsequently evolved. Man and animals have one thing in common - they cannot live without an atmosphere.

The atmosphere is composed of oxygen and carbon dioxide. Oxygen is a colorless and tasteless gas. It is found in many organic substances and is found in many cells. During breathing, a person receives oxygen from the air, it enters the lungs. In the lungs, the blood takes oxygen, and the person exhales carbon dioxide. It would seem that oxygen is everywhere, and it cannot do anything bad to a person. But this is not the case. You cannot breathe air in which there is oxygen without impurities.

Why can't you breathe pure oxygen?

• Scientists help to answer this question. Pure oxygen without impurities, even under normal pressure, damages tissue and does not allow carbon dioxide to escape. The maximum amount of time that you can breathe pure oxygen is 10-15 minutes. If it takes longer, you can get poisoned. First, oxygen intoxicates a person, then he loses consciousness, he starts having convulsions. If a person is not saved, then a lethal outcome is possible.
• The danger of oxygen poisoning is taken into account, for example, in the production of oxygen bags and other similar devices. Inside each oxygen cushion there is a mixture of gases, in which pure oxygen is only about 70%. The remaining 30% refers to a mixture of other substances.
• Pure oxygen can not be poisoned if the atmospheric pressure is very far from the norm and is very low. But this happens very rarely, so it is important to be very careful. The danger of oxygen poisoning exists among people working in mines and submariners. Therefore, it is very important to know how to provide first aid for oxygen poisoning. For example, divers need to reduce the depth of the descent, stop, and let the victim breathe with a gas mixture. The depth of descent is generally very important to control.

Incredible facts

Today we will talk about situations when oxygen is useful to everyone, when it is dangerous and whether situations when it is in short supply are real.

So, let's talk about the most common myths about oxygen.

Oxygen myths

1. We get enough oxygen when we breathe

The deficiency of this element has a serious impact on the functioning of all systems and organs. The immune, respiratory, central nervous, cardiovascular systems suffer.

Remember that breathing normally does not mean that your body is getting the amount of oxygen it needs. Lack of oxygen can be caused by several factors.

- smoking

A smoker's brain receives much less oxygen than a non-smoker's brain. Moreover, when a person decides to quit smoking, his brain receives even less oxygen, because in the first 12 hours without cigarettes, his metabolism slows down by 17 percent.

- bad ecology

When fuel is burned, carbon monoxide is formed, which provokes poisoning of the body. It comes into contact with hemoglobin, as a result of which our body experiences oxygen starvation, and symptoms of poisoning appear: dizziness, nausea, headaches, weakness.

- inflammatory processes

because of inflammatory processesoccurring in the body, there may be a lack of oxygen in the tissues. For example, this can occur with the development of certain infectious diseases and with certain types of cancer.

Oxygen effect

2. Benefit can be obtained from any dose of oxygen

We breathe atmospheric air, which is only 20.9 percent oxygen. The remaining constituents: nitrogen - 78 percent, argon - 1 percent and carbon dioxide - 0.03 percent.

With a lack of oxygen, health problems occur, however, an excess of it also carries some danger. For example, if mice inhale pure 100 percent oxygen for half an hour, then they get injured brain system and coordination problems develop.

When oxygen is consumed too quickly and without restriction in high doses, free radicals are formed, which, in turn, severely damage and even kill cells throughout the body.

A slight increase in the amount of oxygen consumed is even beneficial. So, if you inhale air with a 30% oxygen content daily for 10-20 minutes, then the metabolic process normalizes, the level of glucose in the blood decreases, and excess weight also goes away.

Oxygen is often consumed in the form of an oxygen cocktail, which is a foam-like mixture of air and oxygen. In such cocktails, the oxygen concentration reaches 90 percent, but this is not dangerous in this case, because such oxygen does not enter the body through the lungs, but enters the bloodstream through the stomach and intestines.

Oxygen cocktails quickly give you a feeling of fullness, which in turn suppresses appetite and helps you get rid of extra pounds. Among other things, oxygen cocktails increase the speed metabolic processes in lymphocytes, blood cells responsible for immunity.

As a result, the energy stations of cells (mitochondria) become denser, which accelerates metabolism and subsequently increases immunity.

The importance of oxygen

3. Any oxygen cocktail is the best medicine

An oxygen cocktail is a fairly common appointment in sanatoriums in order to maintain immunity, or in maternity hospitals to compensate for placental insufficiency.

However, in spite of everything, the foamy mixture of oxygen and air is nowhere registered as a medicinal mixture, therefore such cocktails are quietly sold in fitness cafes and in ordinary shopping centers.

4. An oxygen cocktail cannot be made at home

An oxygen cocktail can be made at home using small concentrators. Such a device can make about five liters of an air-oxygen mixture in one minute, it is not demanding to maintain, and takes up very little space.

For example, there are hubs that make one liter of mixture per cycle, they are smaller than a conventional toaster and fit easily in any kitchen.

As for the noise level, it is comparable to a normal conversation, however, the air-oxygen mixture in such portable concentrators is no worse than in professional devices - the same 90 percent oxygen.

Household appliances are not picky about care, it is easier to take care of them than a coffee maker: it is necessary to change the water in the humidifier after each operation of the appliance, and to purchase a new filter every six months.

The oxygen cocktail mixture can be purchased ready-made. They have a variety of flavors and essential additives. It is very easy to prepare everything: you just need to pour the juice base, fruit juice base or plain water into a special container, add the mixture and connect the container to the concentrator.

Oxygen in human life

5. Oxygen allergies are common

The allergy may appear not to oxygen itself, but to the constituent ingredients of an oxygen cocktail, for example, gelatin, licorice extract or egg white, which are added to form a foam.

Recently, the country has spread the news: the state corporation "Rusnano" invests 710 million rubles in the production of innovative drugs against age-related diseases. We are talking about the so-called "Skulachev ions" - a fundamental development of domestic scientists. It will help combat the aging of cells that causes oxygen.

"How so? - you will be surprised. "It is impossible to live without oxygen, and you say that it accelerates aging!" In fact, there is no contradiction here. The engine of aging is reactive oxygen species, which are already formed inside our cells.

Energy source

Few know that pure oxygen is dangerous. It is used in medicine in small doses, but if you breathe it for a long time, you can get poisoned. Laboratory mice and hamsters, for example, live in it for only a few days. The air we breathe contains a little more than 20% oxygen.

Why do so many living things, including humans, need a small amount of this dangerous gas? The fact is that O2 is a powerful oxidizing agent, almost no substance can resist it. And we all need energy to live. So, we (as well as all animals, fungi and even most bacteria) can receive it by oxidizing certain nutrients... Literally burning them like wood in a fireplace insert.

This process takes place in every cell of our body, where there are special "energy stations" for it - mitochondria. This is where everything that we ate ultimately ends up (of course, digested and decomposed to the simplest molecules). And it is inside the mitochondria that oxygen does the only thing it can - oxidize.

This method of obtaining energy (called aerobic) is very beneficial. For example, some living creatures are able to receive energy without oxygen oxidation. Only thanks to this gas, several times more energy is obtained from the same molecule than without it!

A hidden catch

Of the 140 liters of oxygen that we breathe in a day from the air, almost everything is spent on obtaining energy. Almost - but not all. Approximately 1% is spent on the production of ... poison. The fact is that during the useful activity of oxygen, hazardous substances are also formed, the so-called "reactive oxygen species". These are free radicals and hydrogen peroxide.

Why did nature even want to produce this poison? Some time ago, scientists found an explanation for this. Free radicals and hydrogen peroxide with the help of a special protein-enzyme are formed on the outer surface of cells, with their help our body destroys bacteria that have entered the blood. It is very reasonable considering that the hydroxide radical competes with bleach in its toxicity.

However, not all poison ends up outside the cells. It is also formed in those very "energy stations", mitochondria. They also have their own DNA, which is damaged by reactive oxygen species. Then everything is clear and so: the work of power plants goes wrong, DNA is damaged, aging begins ...

Shaky balance

Fortunately, nature has taken care of neutralizing reactive oxygen species. Over billions of years of oxygen life, our cells have basically learned to keep O2 in check. Firstly, it should not be too much or too little - both of which provoke the formation of poison. Therefore, mitochondria are able to “expel” excess oxygen, as well as “breathe” so that it cannot form those very free radicals. Moreover, in the arsenal of our body there are substances that are good at fighting free radicals. For example, antioxidant enzymes that convert them into more harmless hydrogen peroxide and just oxygen. Other enzymes immediately take hydrogen peroxide into circulation, converting it into water.

All this multi-stage protection works well, but over time it starts to malfunction. At first, scientists thought that protective enzymes against reactive oxygen species weaken over the years. It turned out, no, they are still cheerful and active, however, according to the laws of physics, some free radicals still bypass the multi-stage protection and begin to destroy DNA.

Can you maintain your natural defenses against poisonous radicals? Yes, you can. After all, the longer these or those animals live on average, the better their protection is honed. The more intensive the metabolism of a particular species, the more effectively its representatives cope with free radicals. Accordingly, the first aid to yourself from the inside is to lead an active lifestyle, not allowing the metabolism to slow down with age.

We train youth

There are several other factors that help our cells cope with toxic oxygen derivatives. For example, a trip to the mountains (1500 m and above sea level). The higher, the less oxygen in the air, and the inhabitants of the plain, once in the mountains, begin to breathe more often, it is difficult for them to move - the body is trying to compensate for the lack of oxygen. After two weeks of living in the mountains, our body begins to adapt. The level of hemoglobin (a blood protein that carries oxygen from the lungs to all tissues) rises, and cells learn to use O2 more economically. Perhaps, scientists say, this is one of the reasons that there are many long-livers among the mountaineers of the Himalayas, Pamirs, Tibet, and the Caucasus. And even if you only get into the mountains for a vacation once a year, you will receive the same beneficial changes, even if only for a month.

So, you can learn to breathe in a lot of oxygen or, conversely, a little, there are a lot of breathing techniques in both directions. However, by and large, the body will still maintain the amount of oxygen entering the cell at a certain average, optimal for itself and its load level. And that very 1% will go to the production of poison.

Therefore, scientists believe that it will be more effective to go from the other side. Leave alone the amount of O2 and enhance cellular defense against its active forms. We need antioxidants, and those that can penetrate the mitochondria and neutralize the poison there. These are exactly what Rusnano wants to produce. Perhaps, in a few years, such antioxidants can be taken, like the current vitamins A, E and C.

Rejuvenating drops

The list of modern antioxidants is no longer limited to the listed vitamins A, E and C. Among latest discoveries - antioxidant ions SkQ, developed by a group of scientists led by a full member of the Academy of Sciences, Honorary President of the Russian Society of Biochemists and Molecular Biologists, Director of the Institute of Physical and Chemical Biology named after A. N. Belozersky Moscow State University, USSR State Prize laureate, founder and dean of the Faculty of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics of Moscow State University Vladimir Skulachev.

Back in the 70s of the twentieth century, he brilliantly proved the theory that mitochondria are the "power stations" of cells. For this, positively charged particles ("Skulachev ions") were invented, which can penetrate into the mitochondria. Now Academician Skulachev and his students have “attached” an antioxidant substance to these ions, which is able to “deal” with toxic oxygen compounds.

At the first stage, these will not be "pills for old age", but drugs for the treatment of specific diseases. First in line are eye drops to treat some age-related vision problems. Such drugs have already given absolutely fantastic results when tested on animals. Depending on the species, new antioxidants can reduce early mortality, increase life expectancy, and prolong maximum age — tempting prospects!