Speaking of the benefits of oxygen, the first thing that’s crossing your mind must be ‘breathing’. Well, it is true but oxygen is not only used for breathing but much more than that. Everybody knows that without oxygen, there’s no life. So, in other words, oxygen is a very essential element in this earth. Luckily, so far in this world, the supply of oxygen is unlimited but it seems that there are some people who are walking and living in this earth are not grateful enough and cause some air pollution that makes oxygen though is still unlimited but already contaminated by dangerous substances that could endanger the human themselves.
Before we jump to the list of information about benefits of oxygen to human’s body perhaps learning about what happen to our body when suffering oxygen deficiency is necessary so you have a bigger picture what will happen to you if there is no more oxygen for you to breathe.
Symptoms of Oxygen deficiency:
- Easily get tired
- Acute fatigue
- Body weakness
- Dizziness
- Depression
- Hard to focus which could lead to memory lost
- Circulation problem
- Digestion problem
- Acid stomach
- Muscle pains
- Irritability
- Lung problem
- Weak immunity system so easily infected by viruses, bacteria and etc.
- Chronic diseases
Chronic diseases here mean that there are more than 100 possibilities of chronic diseases that you could suffer just from oxygen deficiency. Just imagine that this world is without oxygen even only for a couple of minutes, since oxygen is the major element in the ozone that block the UV rays, without which we would be turned into human toast. Since oxygen is the essential element that binds concrete structure, all buildings made of concrete will be turned into dust. There is no more water in the earth since the formula of water is H2O, without the O then there is no more H2O. In summary, it’s the end of the world.
It is true that sometimes you don’t even remember that you’re actually breathing. Since breathing comes naturally that even a baby doesn’t need to learn how to breathe. However, do you even know that the simply activity like breathing is actually having a very prominent role in your life? And without which you will lose the essential thing you have, life. Yes, it means you’re dead if you’re no longer breathing. So, appreciate it since you still can do it. Below is the list of benefits of oxygen, so you know how essential oxygen for your life is.
Benefits of Oxygen for Human’s Body
Oxygen for Brain
Oxygen is essential element for the brain; the condition when the oxygen is deprived from the brain is called cerebral anoxia. Cerebral anoxia is divided into four categories based on the severity.
- Contribute in Cognitive and Behavioral System
Do you have family or friend who has survived from stroke? The closest family often claimed that after the stroke attack, they turn into someone else. Well, it is actually the fact that oxygen has prominent function in contributing the cognitive and behavioral system to function optimally. The stroke happened when blood is not enough to supply the oxygen required to the brain and force heart to work harder.
- Contribute in Optimizing the Brain Function
Do you know why a person could be in a coma condition? It is because brain doesn’t get enough oxygen because, due to some conditions, blood stops to flow to the brain so there is no supply for oxygen. If it happens in a long period then the result is coma. The worst condition that could happen through this condition is brain death. It means, the patient may still be breathing but overall the body will not function at all since brain is no longer giving order to body system.
- Motor Skills
Lacking of oxygen in the brain could lead to the motor skills problem as well. It is because during the cerebral anoxia condition cells don’t get enough oxygen which lead to damaged or death cells in cerebellum which has prominent function in coordination of movement and balance. It is closely related to the function of oxygen in regeneration of cells, including the cerebellum.
- Heart Rate
It is still closely related to the blood flow to the brain. When somehow the flow of blood to the brain is disturbed then it means brain doesn’t receive enough oxygen. This condition will affect the heart to work harder in an attempt to make sure that brain will get the oxygen supply required but this condition could lead to heart attack. In other words, if brain is get enough supply of oxygen the risk of heart attack and stroke could be reduced significantly.
- Fainting and Dizziness
When a person got a concussion of the brain the first symptom appears may be fainting followed by dizziness. It means that the oxygen supply in the brain is low or drop. So, if you feel like you’re about to faint, just breathe deeply and the symptom is possible to be reduced. However, too much oxygen could lead to excess amount of carbon dioxide in the body. The same symptoms could appear also if you are hyperventilating.
Oxygen as Natural Detoxification
Have you heard about oxygen therapy? It is one of the therapy types that recently popular for detoxification. There are a lot of people who are trying this kind of therapy in order to detoxify all the toxins and improve the cells regeneration for a better and healthier life.
- Aid in Clear Toxins
It is one of the purposes of oxygen therapy to clear toxins. Oxygen is also found in the blood and one of the functions is to bind some toxic materials and wash it away from the blood. This kind of therapy is mostly conducted by alcoholic and drug addiction patients to wash away all the effects of alcohol and drug from their blood.
- Aid in Damaged Cells Tissue
Oxygen will contribute in the cell regeneration of damaged tissue caused by inflammation. During the therapy, oxygen supply will be supplied in higher amount through the blood vessels and accelerate the tissue regeneration. So, the healing process could be accelerated and the immunity system will be improved significantly as well to support the healing process.
- Improve Cells Regeneration
One important thing to remember is that cells regeneration would not happen without oxygen. By making sure cells received enough oxygen could guarantee the regeneration of cells to be in the optimal condition. That’s why making sure that all body cells received enough oxygen is essential for the regeneration of cells will lead to the improvement of immunity system.
- Detoxify Important Organ
Oxygen therapy also could be applied for people who are suffering specific condition in their liver or pancreas due to alcohol or drugs. Oxygen will cleanse up the toxic substances and at the same time repair the damaged cells caused by those dangerous substances by accelerating the cells regeneration.
- Better Sleep Pattern
Some people just don’t realize that good night sleep is actually a very good detox for brain. When you experience a good night sleep, you will wake up in fresher condition that will improve the brain function. When brain is function optimally you will be able to control your emotion and once your emotion under controlled, the decision making process could be much easier to be done. Besides that fresh mind means as better memory, better focus and better alertness. That’s why a person who has a very good night sleep a day before will have better performance during the work day.
Oxygen and Its Relation to Chronic Disease
Low supply of oxygen in the body also could lead to a serious medical condition. Below are some facts that oxygen could do wonder in preventing some chronic diseases to occur.
- Prevent the Development of Cancerous Cells
Interesting fact that related to cancer disease, cancer could attack almost all organs in our body, except for the heart. You must realize now that there is no such disease like heart cancer. Why? Because heart is where the blood is produced and distributed. One of the essential components contained in blood is oxygen. In other words, there is always enough supply of oxygen in the heart that oxygenated the heart cells which will prevent the development of any cancerous cells.
- Prevent Heart Disease
One example has been mentioned above that when brain doesn’t receive enough supply of oxygen, nerves system will directly force heart to work harder that could lead to heart attack condition. Besides that the main symptom of heart disease is when cells of body tissues don’t get the oxygen properly. In other words, oxygen has important role in making sure that all body tissues are oxygenated, this condition will lead heart to work optimally but without pressures.
- Prevent the Seizure in Epilepsy Patient
Do you know that one of the triggers of seizure in epilepsy patient is when the brain doesn’t get enough oxygen? Some recent studies have proven that it is impossible for a seizure to happen in the epilepsy patient when they are in a normal breathing condition but when the breathing is disturbed the possibility of seizure is also higher.
- Prevent Diabetes
If you have been diagnosed with diabetes you will realize that you have heavy breathing. Well, it is true that the main cause of diabetes is when body cannot produce enough insulin or when body resists insulin so the excess glucose in the blood cannot be turned into energy. However, there is one more reason why body cannot produce enough insulin or why body resists the insulin; it is the low oxygen level in the cells. Low oxygen in the pancreas cells will reduce the function of pancreas to produce insulin and the low oxygen supply in the body cells will prevent the optimal absorption of glucose in the fats cells.
- Prevent Asthma
Well, surely you have known that asthma is one of the chronic respiratory conditions. This condition cannot be healed but the symptoms are still possible to be dealt with or even reduced. This condition happens when lung doesn’t receive oxygen that causes a person hard to breathe. Normal breathing therapy could assist in reducing the symptoms significantly and avoid the triggers are also one of the best way to avoid asthma attack.
Actually, the lack of oxygen could lead to more than 100 types of chronic diseases but the 5 chronic diseases mentioned above are only the examples since those diseases are the common one and could happen to anyone.
Others Benefits of Oxygen
Below are the other benefits of oxygen that you should know because even the simple activity like breathing is prominent to our body.
- Source of Energy
Glucose is important substances to supply energy but glucose without oxygen will not be able to be turned into energy at all. The result is excess blood sugar that could lead to diabetes. So, oxygen is also having important role in turning glucose into energy. That’s why during a workout, your breathing will be heavier because body required more oxygen while burning the fats and calories and turned them into energy.
- Stabilize the Nervous System
Nervous system source is in the brain and that’s why most of oxygen supplies in the body required by the brain. It is because nervous system is the source of all body’s activity from movement, balance, behavior, mental condition and etc. Enough supply of oxygen in the brain means stabile nervous system so body could function optimally.
- Improve Immunity System
One of the reasons why you’re easily get infected by virus or bacteria is when your immunity system is in low condition. The risk will be higher if some cells in your body are old and weak which will lead to the immunity system problem. The regeneration of cells will be optimized if the oxygen supply is also optimal. It means that when your body get enough oxygen then the regeneration of cells will not disturbed and it will contribute in the improvement of immunity system as well.
- Required for Digestive System
What that mostly people don’t know is digestive system won’t function properly without oxygen. In other words, without oxygen your digestive system will not work at all or stop completely. It is because during digestion, intestine muscle will contract to process foods into liquid and those contractions required oxygen to function.
- Respiratory Dependence
You must be surprised that respiratory system is not only about breathing but even this system required energy for breathing. So, from where respiratory system will get the energy? Of course from digestive system that produces nutrients to be absorbed by blood. The nutrients absorbed will be turned into energy in the fats cells. Once again, oxygen has important role in producing energy for body to function properly, including the respiratory system itself.
The benefits mentioned above are not all of the benefits of oxygen but only some that really matters because if we should list all the benefits then the list would be countless. In summary, all systems in our body need oxygen even everything in this world needs oxygen from plant, animal up to concrete building that we considered as inanimate still required oxygen to stand still. So to understand more about oxygen below is some interesting fact about oxygen you should know:
- Oxygen is not only the form of gas but there is also liquid oxygen and its color is pale blue and it is magnetic.
- The liquid oxygen is very cold. The temperature may reach -183˚ C or about -297˚ F.
- The higher you climb the little oxygen available. That’s why when you love mountain climbing; it is not the mountain lion you should afraid of but whether there is enough oxygen or not for you to breath when you’re reaching the summit.
- The air we breathe contained 21% of oxygen while the rest consists of 78% of nitrogen and 1% other gasses.
- As mentioned above that if earth lost its oxygen then there’s no more water in this world. It is actually true because in water weight the 88.9% is the oxygen.
- Don’t just think that photosynthesis is prominent to provide oxygen for us to breathe only. The fact is that photosynthesis process is also required to provide enough oxygen in the atmosphere as well. Without oxygen in the atmosphere, everything on earth will be toasted. So, be green now and stop cutting the trees because they are essential to protect us from being a human toast.
- The recent deforestation is the main reason why the oxygen in the atmosphere is unstable.
- Though making fire required oxygen but you should know that oxygen doesn’t burn.
- Planes also need oxygen in order to fly. Without which the machine will be dead completely.
Now you have known how important oxygen for your life is and surely some interesting facts about oxygen as mentioned above will open your mind a bit wider about how essential oxygen for our life is. So, please appreciate it because by appreciating it means you’re appreciating the life itself.