The History of Ozone Therapy

There are very few people outside of the medical community who have heard of ozone therapy with the exception of those who have had to undergo this process in their treatment. The fact is that this therapy has been around since the nineteenth century and has been employed in many different ways since then. The first time it was utilized was as a method for sterilizing surgical rooms and the equipment that would be used to operate on patients. It was also used to disinfect drinking water to get rid of germs, bacteria and other health issues associated with water treatments.

It was also used to treat tuberculosis as well as some inner ear infections that caused deafness with limited success. The First World War was when ozone therapy made huge leaps because of the ability to kill bacteria and was used to treat wounds that soldiers received during combat. The physicians that opted for this treatment realized that not only did the treatment help keep the wound sterile, but it also helped to keep the wound from swelling and losing oxygen which is needed to for a wound to heal properly.

There is some controversy regarding this type of treatment however as some assert that this therapy is not tested enough nor has it offered genuine medical benefits above being used as a sterilization technique. Some states in the United States have banned the use of them with Florida being the most vocal about the prohibition of its use. When this therapy is used on mammals other than human test subjects, there have been issues with the treatments that make it difficult for some to realize the benefits to humans.

Many other countries allow full use of ozone therapy and have full clinics dedicated to its practice while still requiring them to maintain and use them according to each governing body's rule. The main issue is that the intravenous use can be dangerous and does hold some side effects. Proponents for the treatments claim that the benefits outweigh the side effects and rely on their own studies to prove out this point.

While controversial, it is common knowledge among those in the industry that ozone therapy can have its benefits. It is a great way to sterilize large areas and equipment for surgical use and can definitely decontaminate water. There is still more study that needs to be done to determine how harmful the therapy is on the human body.