Tiger Woods: New (Unpaid) HBOT Spokesman

In his pre-Masters press conference the golf great, by way of denying any illegal use of performance-enhancing drugs, says hyperbaric oxygen "helps you heal faster." Okay. Apparently it helped Tiger rehab from knee surgery and an achilles tear in 2008-2009. And he's certainly not alone. We've been following a long line of top athletes, from Australian cricketers to Superbowl stars to mixed martial artists, who swear by HBOT for speedier recovery. More soon.

But we're of a mind that HBOT is also a performance-enhancing therapy, akin to blood doping and this plasma-spinning thing Tiger's into. Even horse racing officials ban animals from competition for days or weeks following hyperbaric treatments. (Read our horse stories HERE.) We're especially fascinated by the rise of portable/personal hyperbarics for rehabilitation, performance, superhealth, fitness, anti-aging, wellness, and a host of other lifestyle applications.

Look for related blogposts and conditions pages as we dig and collect new HyperbaricLinks on this subject.

Super Bowl XLIV: Saints, Colts Stars Betting On HBOT

Both teams in tomorrow's Super Bowl have a lot riding on the success of hyperbaric oxygen therapy. Besides a pretty nifty ring, one winner may also claim the title of HBOT Poster Boy.

Indianapolis Colts defensive end Dwight Freeney is using HBOT to speed healing of a swollen right ankle. This week ESPN blogger Paul Kuharsky (photo right) posted a fun story about his own chamber experience after sampling Freeney's treatment protocol.

New Orleans Saints safety Darren Sharper actually sleeps in a portable chamber, not to rehabilitate from any injury but to supplement his strict diet and fitness regimen. He's only too happy to tell you all about it on YouTube (video below).




Once again we're full of questions about the efficacy of HBOT for speed-healing and the rightful place of mild (mHBOT) portable chambers and personal hyperbarics in this rapidly growing field of medicine. It'll be fun trying to catch up to all the professional athletes who swear by it.

Living Longer: Time Machine Or Crazy Talk Redux?

Undeterred by her unflattering Newsweek cover story and macabre photos of Michael Jackson napping hyperbarically, Oprah today reran her segment on "High-Tech Ways to Extend Your Life." See our March 5 post. This time around we duly noted Dr Oz's final phrase on HBOT's anti-aging power: "Or that's our hope, anyway."

Michael Jackson Postscript: Captain EO

Mind if O2.0 starts a harmless urban legend? We're pretty sure the whole sleeping in a hyperbaric thing was a publicity stunt for Captain EO. Michael and producer George Lucas wanted to cultivate a science fiction persona and missed the mark by a light year or two. Very sorry we can't post the clip in the original 3D. Directed by Francis Ford Coppola, no less. Now THAT is funny.

King Of Stop It Already

One of our Twitter followers just asked if it's too soon for jokes about hyperbaric chambers. Too late. Millions already posted, and Michael Jackson has been the talk of the UHMS conference all day, too. Is it just plain Bad or merely Human Nature that people can't help mocking celebrity or thumbing their noses at death?

O2.0 would rather suffer a metric ton of chatroom zingers than abide some of the drivel circulating today in the underground baromedical community. This is the first and last time, for example, we'll ever link to the so-called HBOT Truth blog.

Let's face it. Michael Jackson is all most people know about HBOT. We're totally okay with that. We wish them all long and happy lives. And we're right here when anyone wants the real HBOT truth, without any hidden identities or agendas. Till then we'll retweet any jokes that strike the right balance of irreverence and schadenfreude. Haven't found any yet.

Living Longer: HBOT Gets The Full Oprah Treatment

Dr. Mehmet Oz counts hyperbaric oxygen therapy among his "High-Tech Ways To Extend Your Life." On the show he tries HBOT himself and gives Oprah a quick primer in the studio.