THe Healing Powers of Hydrogen Peroxide

[Santosha]

You know that something's going around when you log onto facebook and 1/3 of your friends have status updates involving being sick. It sucks. We all try to eat right, exorcize, and keep good hygiene but these don't always safe-guard us from the good ole' cold & flu viruses that hit.

Usually, when you get sick and end up at an insta-care they will run a quick strep test on you, many times ruling out bacterial infections.. and then your screwed. Antibiotics can't touch viruses, and you've got nothing left to save you except your own, already comprimised, immune system. Sometimes they will just do a quick rundown and throw a Z-pack at you. In all the times I've been to a doctor with some kind of cold/illness, I have NEVER had them reccomend Hydrogen Peroxide. But the healing benefits of hydrogen peroxide are nothing less than extraordinary! It is quite possibly the BEST item you can have in your home. It is an anti-bacterial AND an anti-viral. It oxgenates the bloodstream and tissues upon contact. Any virus, most bacterias, and most cancers CAN NOT SURVIVE in highly oxgenated environements. This one compound could, quite literally, be the seed of many cures, including the HIV-virus.

People seem to fall into 2 camps when it comes to HP. They either swear by it and rave on and on about its healing properties, or they deem it dangerous to injest. Many studies by highly credited doctors support HP as a safe compound to use, both orally and intravenously for certain conditions. It is safe, readily available, and dirt cheap.

Here are some conditions where HP has been used successfully:

Allergies
Headaches
Altitude Sickness
Herpes Simplex
Alzheimer's
Herpes Zoster
Anemia
HIV Infection
Arrhythmia
Influenza
Asthma
Insect Bites
Bacterial Infections
Liver Cirrhosis
Bronchitis
Lupus Erythematosis
Cancer
Multiple Sclerosis
Candida
Parasitic Infections
Cardiovascular Disease
Parkinsonism
Cerebral Vascular Disease
Periodontal Disease
Chronic Pain
Prostatitis
Diabetes Type 11
Rheumatoid Arthritis
Diabetic Gangrene
Shingles
Diabetic Retinopahty
Sinusitis
Digestion Problems
Sore Throat
Epstein-Barr Infection
Ulcers
Emphysema
Viral Infections
Food Allergies
Warts
Fungal Infections
Yeast Infections
Gingivitis

Obviously I'm not advocating that anyone goes out and drinks a bottle of HP. But I would highly consider using this for any skin infections, you can safely put small amounts of it in your baths, you can mix it with water and gargle/brush your teeth, etc. Some doctors advocate consuming 1-3 drops a day of the store brand 3% variety.

On a personal note: I caught some kind of sore throat virus, and my throat, tonsils, tongue just about killed me for 10 days. I finally went in and they told me exactly what I hoped they wouldn't. "It's a virus, nothing you can do. Sleep and drink lots of juice." I started researching this stuff online, ran across the HP studies, decided to brush my teeth and gargle with a mix of water and HP on and off for a day. WOke up the next day and my throat was almost completely healed.

Check it out!

 

[MacGuffin]

This thread engaged my NT Attack Mode like none other in several weeks.

I'll be going now!

 

[Qlip]

I dunno Hux. I know that if you combine Hydrogen Peroxide, Vinegar and Salt then you can etch the copper off of circuit boards.

 

[Santosha]

I would never suggest someone just "takes my word for it" .. do the research. And if you find accredited studies that there is more harm then good, post em here. I am always open to new info "p" =P

 

[JocktheMotie]

I'm not convinced yet. I think you should drink some more HP and come back to us with more data.

 

[Santosha]

This thread engaged my NT Attack Mode like none other in several weeks.

I'll be going now!

Why don't you put some thought into it, instead of being shitty. I'm interested in what you know.

 

[MacGuffin]

Why don't you put some thought into it, instead of being shitty. I'm interested in what you know.

That was me being nice...

 

[Santosha]

That was me being nice...

I don't know if you are misunderstanding what I'm saying here or not. OBVIOUSLY HP in highdoses is terribley dangerous. The few people that used it intravaneously were I believe, emphyzema patients and did this through medical supervision in hospitals. But the benefits of your typical, otc 3% when diluted an additional 50% has been widely reported. The FDA warns against the use of 35% and industrial strength. I don't see anything about 3% (but am still looking).

So if you have some real info to add to the discussion, PLEASE DO. Your not being "nice" by "sparing me from your critical NT logic" ... your coming across as egotistical and non-contributing. Even if my opinion on this is wrong.. i'd still rather be corrected than "spared". Make sense?

 

[MacGuffin]

As to what to make of the numerous claims asserted of the hydrogen peroxide, in the main, most external uses of household-strength hydrogen peroxide are relatively harmless (if not necessarily helpful), but internal use should be shunned. Gargle with it, wipe wounds with it, foam the wax out of your ears with it, bleach your hair and your clothes with it, but don't drink it or let someone shoot it into your veins.

http://www.snopes.com/medical/homecure/peroxide.asp

"[T]here is no scientific evidence that hydrogen peroxide is a safe, effective or useful cancer treatment"
-"Questionable methods of cancer management: hydrogen peroxide and other 'hyperoxygenation' therapies". CA: a cancer journal for clinicians 43 (1): 47–56. 1993.

Hydrogen peroxide looks like it's working as it bubbles and stings. An uncovered cut seems to dry up, scab and look less moist and open.

But multiple randomized, controlled trials -- the best kind of research -- show that hydrogen peroxide does not prevent or treat infections in wounds. Not only that, hydrogen peroxide slows healing and may even cause cellular damage. That bubbling you see? It's probably the hydrogen peroxide attacking you.

http://articles.cnn.com/2011-07-12/...-peroxide-wound-healing-vitamin?_s=PM:OPINION


Just say no to medical quackery!

It's like I'm dealing with a forwarded email from my mother.

 

[Santosha]

http://www.snopes.com/medical/homecure/peroxide.asp

"[T]here is no scientific evidence that hydrogen peroxide is a safe, effective or useful cancer treatment"
-"Questionable methods of cancer management: hydrogen peroxide and other 'hyperoxygenation' therapies". CA: a cancer journal for clinicians 43 (1): 47–56. 1993.


http://articles.cnn.com/2011-07-12/...-peroxide-wound-healing-vitamin?_s=PM:OPINION


Just say no to medical quackery!

It's like I'm dealing with a forwarded email from my mother.

Thanks for the info, McGuffin (even if you can't seem to let that snarky undertone go).. I will definately continue to research this more. But am quite baffled at how it resolved a nagging sore throat for me overnight, with useless healing properties. I'm sure a skeptic would indicate my body just coincidentally healed itself at that time, despite the bubbling attack of that HP!

 

[MacGuffin]

Thanks for the info, McGuffin (even if you can't seem to let that snarky undertone go).. I will definately continue to research this more. But am quite baffled at how it resolved a nagging sore throat for me overnight, with useless healing properties. I'm sure a skeptic would indicate my body just coincidentally healed itself at that time, despite the bubbling attack of that HP!

Sorry for the snark.

It may have helped a bit, but it's unlikely that it could penetrate the tissues deeply enough to attack the virus itself. I would chalk it up to coincidence.

 

[jimrckhnd]

The FDA warns against the use of 35% and industrial strength. I don't see anything about 3% (but am still looking).

If you get your hands on any industrial or laboratory grade stuff - PLEASE be careful with it. Aside from the ability to all kinds of interesting things to surfaces and fabrics - it is obviously a very powerful oxidizer and you can damage tissue with it - most esp. eyes and other delicate tissues.

I wonder about the usefullness of ingesting it: seems to me you'd hit the stomach and the hydrogen from the HCl in your stomach would just grab ahold of the spare oxygen and make some water - plus leave a few spare Cl anions floating around. But then I'm not an organic guy so who knows what other enzymes are floating around down there. It's possible (and I'm way out on a limb here) to speculate that taken with or after food it might aid in digestion.

But clearly for topical applications its great stuff. I had a nasty staff infection recently and I flushed the site with some lab grade stuff - yeah, that smarted but it cleaned it up alot (not recommending it BTW - next time I'd cut it by half with deionized water). And I do gargle with the 3% stuff when my throat acts up. I figure it may be uesfull for dental health as well - alot of the organisims in our mouth that cause cavities aren't going to be very happy to get sloshed with hydrogen peroxide - esp. the one hiding between our teeth and along the gum line.

 

[Beargryllz]

MY OXIDATION STATE WILL LAY WASTE TO THE NATURAL ENEMIES OF YOUR HUMAN BODY

RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW

Fun fact: almost every living organism uses an enzyme called catalase to react peroxides into water. Peroxides are so good at ravaging life that almost every life form has a way to remove them. One molecule of catalase can convert 40 million molecules of hydrogen peroxide to water and oxygen each second. It's a very cool item

 

[jimrckhnd]

MY OXIDATION STATE WILL LAY WASTE TO THE NATURAL ENEMIES OF YOUR HUMAN BODY

RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW

Fun fact: almost every living organism uses an enzyme called catalase to react peroxides into water. Peroxides are so good at ravaging life that almost every life form has a way to remove them. One molecule of catalase can convert 40 million molecules of hydrogen peroxide to water and oxygen each second. It's a very cool item

Is that reaction path still exothermic? I wonder if that stuff has been synthesized - I can see some uses for that.

 

[Glycerine]

I heard it's good for removing blood stains. lol.
I was researching it. It doesn't look too harmful but definitely considered an irritant so careful use would be advised.

 

[Keps Mnemnosyne]

Thank you Beargryllz for mentioning catalases. However I would like to add that there are a number of microorganisms without a form of catalase and so H2O2 is still used as a diagnostic tool and as a sanitizing agent for a few applications. For Jim the enzyme reaction is highly exothermic producing H20 and O2. It has been used as fuel for rockets. Lastly peroxisomes within eukaryote cells produce peroxides for both defense mechanisms and digestion of larger molecules.

As for the OP, 3% solution of H2O2 won't harm you on cuts, but ingesting it in small amounts would mean little as it would be neutralized as it reached the stomach. Large consumption could pose a problem as it would reach your intestines before converting to a large volume of gas. (Conjecturing not in the stomach due to acids denaturing enzymes and primary components of stomach acid would not react in a non-circular loop with peroxide.)

As for underlying idea of increasing the amounts of oxygen in your blood there are several reasons divers rarely use pure oxygen in their dive tanks and why we have antioxidants in our body. Oxygen in high concentrations is poisonous and even at the concentrations we breathe we undergo oxidative stress. Despite what this pro-H2O2 website says oxygen levels have not decreased by half in the past century.

Please remember the air you breathe is slowly killing you.

 

[Randomnity]

But am quite baffled at how it resolved a nagging sore throat for me overnight, with useless healing properties. I'm sure a skeptic would indicate my body just coincidentally healed itself at that time, despite the bubbling attack of that HP!

Time and particularly sleep is one of the best things for healing, and is a huge reason why quack/homeopathic medicine is so popular and oft-repeated. If you feel better in a day or two, it must have worked! This is why unlike old wives tales, science uses controls (i.e. does it get better on its own) and also takes into account the placebo effect (i.e. does thinking you're taking medicine improve your illness? very often yes!). 10 days is pretty long for a viral infection so I'm not at all surprised that it would clear up mostly overnight at that point. That's usually how sore throats disappear for me - wake up one morning and feel totally fine, or almost.

The bubbling is just hydrogen peroxide reacting with an enzyme in your damaged cells to produce oxygen. It's a chemical reaction like baking soda and vinegar - pouring those onto your skin would also cause bubbling and also not improve healing at all (as far as I know anyway, lol).

Fact: peroxide damages healthy tissues. Therefore 1) it's not a very good wound cleanser because it irritates the wound further and 2) it's not surprising if it kills cancer cells in the lab, since most things that kill healthy cells also kill lots of cancer cells. No shit most cancer cells don't do well in a highly-oxygenated environment (which btw would be difficult to produce with peroxide in the body since you can't just dig up the cancer cells and pour peroxide on them) - neither do non-cancerous cells! (Most) cancer cells are actually easy to kill in a lot of ways! That's not the hard part about treating cancer, at all. The hard part is killing all the cancer cells without killing the patient.

 

[Thalassa]

I don't think this is a quack thing, because I gargled with hydrogen peroxide and mouthwash mixed together twice yesterday because my throat had been scratchy, and NOW IT IS FINE.

Also, tea tree oil gets rid of toe nail fungus without having to ingest a medication from the doctor that is expensive and damaging to the liver.

Garlic has been proven to kill bacteria, including MRSA, and I swallow chopped fresh garlic or chew garlic cloves and it works as a natural antibiotic.

Plain unsweetened yogurt (particularly greek yogurt, stuff with high count of the critters) is the best way to treat a yeast infection without irritating your vagina unnecessarily.

Folic acid can prevent bacterial infections, and massage is an excellent form of preventative medicine. So is proper nutrition.

Western culture has been brainwashed to avoid natural remedies and preventative medicine to profit the humongous medical and pharmaceutical industry. It's a load of fucking crap. Many major diseases could be prevented by things like diet, exercise, sleep, and less stress.

I'm not agreeing that peroxide would be a miracle cure for AIDS and cancer, but I'm also not going to join in the stupidity that rejects natural remedies or home remedies because you've been told to take your pharmaceuticals like a good little citizen who can't even afford healthcare.

Note that I believe that modern medicine certainly serves its purpose, I'm not rejecting it entirely, but there are many "little things" that it's not necessary for...though it's imperitive to saving lives in others.

 

[Randomnity]

I don't think this is a quack thing, because I gargled with hydrogen peroxide and mouthwash mixed together twice yesterday because my throat had been scratchy, and NOW IT IS FINE.

Also, tea tree oil gets rid of toe nail fungus without having to ingest a medication from the doctor that is expensive and damaging to the liver.

Garlic has been proven to kill bacteria, including MRSA, and I swallow chopped fresh garlic or chew garlic cloves and it works as a natural antibiotic.

Plain unsweetened yogurt (particularly greek yogurt, stuff with high count of the critters) is the best way to treat a yeast infection without irritating your vagina unnecessarily.

Folic acid can prevent bacterial infections, and massage is an excellent form of preventative medicine. So is proper nutrition.

Western culture has been brainwashed to avoid natural remedies and preventative medicine to profit the humongous medical and pharmaceutical industry. It's a load of fucking crap. Many major diseases could be prevented by things like diet, exercise, sleep, and less stress.

I'm not agreeing that peroxide would be a miracle cure for AIDS and cancer, but I'm also not going to join in the stupidity that rejects natural remedies or home remedies because you've been told to take your pharmaceuticals like a good little citizen who can't even afford healthcare.

Note that I believe that modern medicine certainly serves its purpose, I'm not rejecting it entirely, but there are many "little things" that it's not necessary for...though it's imperitive to saving lives in others.

The difference is that most of those things have actually been scientifically proven to work, and have a rationale for why they work. Tea tree oil and garlic are known to have antiseptic properties (oral garlic sounds dubious although I haven't researched it, but it does work topically). Not so sure on the yogurt thing since it doesn't work for everyone, but it's at least a cool, calming thing to apply, and I think the probiotics thing has at least some scientific evidence, even though not as convincing as a lot of people think. And of course basic nutrition including folic acid is hardly homeopathic; it's common sense!

There's a big difference between at-home remedies (TONS that actually work) and quack claims (many can actually do harm either directly or by avoiding real treatment). Usually the worse the illness, the more likely it would be to be a quack claim. I guarantee that if garlic (for example) could cure cancer, the evil big drug companies wouldn't "suppress" that information, they'd make some "XTRA concentrated garlic cancer drug" thing and sell it for $$$. Drinking peroxide is not going to cure your cancer, but it might kill you if you think you don't need chemo anymore....

As long as it doesn't hurt you (and be very sure of that since health supplements are not regulated) and you won't be hurt by avoiding real treatment, I guess you might as well try whatever seems interesting.

 

[Thalassa]

The difference is that most of those things have actually been scientifically proven to work, and have a rationale for why they work. Tea tree oil and garlic are known to have antiseptic properties (oral garlic sounds dubious although I haven't researched it, but it does work topically). Not so sure on the yogurt thing since it doesn't work for everyone, but it's at least a cool, calming thing to apply, and I think the probiotics thing has at least some scientific evidence, even though not as convincing as a lot of people think. And of course basic nutrition including folic acid is hardly homeopathic; it's common sense!

There's a big difference between at-home remedies (TONS that actually work) and quack claims (many can actually do harm either directly or by avoiding real treatment). Usually the worse the illness, the more likely it would be to be a quack claim. I guarantee that if garlic (for example) could cure cancer, the evil big drug companies wouldn't "suppress" that information, they'd make some "XTRA concentrated garlic cancer drug" thing and sell it for $$$. Drinking peroxide is not going to cure your cancer, but it might kill you if you think you don't need chemo anymore....

As long as it doesn't hurt you (and be very sure of that since health supplements are not regulated) and you won't be hurt by avoiding real treatment, I guess you might as well try whatever seems interesting.

It's not about "interesting." It's about the phenomenon of far-East Asian people being so strangely healthy and living such incredibly long lives. I don't think that's a coincidence.

I agree that drinking hydrogen peroxide might be foolish, and I don't buy anything that promises to be a "miracle cure" but I honestly think the entire benefit of Western medicine applies mainly to things like violent trauma and life-threatening illness. Even some of those life-threatening illnesses could be easily prevented with proper nutrition and exercise and other lifestyle choices.

An acquaintence of mine noted recently something very interesting. She bought the standard, over-the-counter remedy for her daughter's teething and the homeopathic remedy. The homeopathic remedy was far more effective and the baby isn't old enough to experience the placebo effect.

Probiotics work, so does garlic, just like ginger works for nausea, and many other foods have long-term and short-term health benefits. Many of the things we need for our health already exist in nature, and people in other cultures have accepted this for thousands of years.

I agree that Western medicine is necessary for certain things, but I think it's overused, medication is overprescribed, and some of those medications do more harm than good ...like abusing antibiotics, just one common example.

Also, women who treat minor vaginal issues (not STDs) naturally tend to have less reoccurance than women who use the harsh chemical stuff, which can cause further problems.