Hydrogen Peroxide Therapy

A pale blue colored liquid which is weak acid is known as hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). When it gets dissolved in water it becomes more colorless and is more viscous than water. It has got strong oxidizing properties and so it is a powerful bleaching agent. It is not only used for industrial purpose but also it is more recognized for its Medical uses.

Hydrogen peroxide was used as antiseptic and anti-micro bacterial agent for many years and also as an oxidizing agent for different purposes.

Due to its characteristics Hydrogen Peroxide Therapy is sometimes used as a treatment for cancer. The ACS (American Cancer Society) had stated that there is no question of doubt that hydrogen peroxide therapy is safe and effective treatment against cancer treatment. It is suggested that this treatment should be taken under proper guidance of qualified doctors.

Even today, when the use of hydrogen peroxide has decreased with the fame of better-smelling and ready availability of counter products, still many of the doctors and hospitals do use it. Dentists especially use in sterilizing, cleaning and treatment right from floor to the root canal. The correct proportion of baking soda and salt with hydrogen peroxide can make useful toothpaste.

Actions of Hydrogen Peroxide
Hydrogen Peroxide, also known as H2O2 (its chemical formula), is a very simple compound. Here it has got an extra atom of oxygen attached, which is found throughout in the nature and in almost all the cells in the human body.

Hydrogen Peroxide is naturally found in mother’s milk, especially in the first milk secreted right after the birth. It is known as colostrum with high concentration of H2O2 naturally in it.

In earlier 20th century diseases like cholera, tuberculosis, typhoid, ulcers, asthma, whooping cough etc., hydrogen peroxide was used. Although then the place was taken by the medicines from pharmaceutical industries, lowering the market value for H2O2.

Somewhere in the 1950s one of the great physician, Dr. Denham Harman developed the free-radical theory of aging where the Free radicals are molecules, which have a chemically active oxygen atom attached to them. These Free radicals have the capacity to damage cells which leads to the causing of aging and cancer.

Initially, it was assumed that extra oxygen was always damaging, and that the antioxidants were responsible for anti-aging protection. Now it has been cleared that apparently not all the free-radical reactions are damaging. As oxygen helps in cleansing etc., hydrogen peroxide in which extra oxygen is present, stimulates natural killer cells, which attack cancer cells as these attempts to extend all through the body.

In cancer our cells behave abnormally. Cancer cells develops more and more each time and then show different metabolic properties as compared to normal cells. In chemical language we say that our healthy cells or normal cells are aerobic cells that are they use oxygen in many of their chemical reactions. Whereas the cancer cells are known as anaerobic cells that is a cell without oxygen.

Both the cells aerobic cells and anaerobic cells need glucose for energy but it is found that anaerobic cells uses only one fifteenth of the energy per glucose molecule than aerobic cell.

One way in which intravenous hydrogen peroxide can treat cancer is by supplying pure oxygen to the body. Hydrogen peroxide promotes healthy, oxygen based metabolism by saturation the cells and tissues with oxygen.

Another physician, Dr. Charles Farr revealed that intravenous hydrogen peroxide stimulates oxidative enzymes in the body, which help in clearing out of the toxins. He invented that intravenous H2O2 infusions almost doubled the metabolic rate. These changes may account in part for the observed benefits from H2O2 infusions.

It is also very true that in spite of so many advantages of hydrogen peroxide it has many other disadvantages also. Inhalation of hydrogen peroxide openly may cause fatal blood disorders in the body. If taken excessively internally then it may also lead to toxic reactions. If H2O2 is not diluted enough then it may cause chemical reactions leading to cause of nausea, etc. although, anybody going under a treatment it is suggested to be done under proper guidance of medical officers and trained doctors.