An oxygen bar is an establishment, or part of one, that sells oxygen for recreational use. Individual scents may be added to enhance the experience. The flavors in an oxygen bar come from bubbling oxygen through bottles containing aromatic solutions before it reaches the nostrils: most bars use food-grade particles to produce the scent, but some bars use aroma oils. [1] [2]
In 1776, Thomas Henry, an apothecary and Fellow of the Royal Society of England speculated tongue in cheek that Joseph Priestley’s newly discovered dephlogisticated air (now called oxygen) might become "as fashionable as French wine at the fashionable taverns". He did not expect, however, that tavern goers would "relish calling for a bottle of Air, instead of Claret." [3]
Another early reference to the recreational use of oxygen is found in Jules Verne's 1870 novel Around the Moon . In this work, Verne states:
Do you know, my friends, that a curious establishment might be founded with rooms of oxygen, where people whose system is weakened could for a few hours live a more active life. Fancy parties where the room was saturated with this heroic fluid, theaters where it should be kept at high pressure; what passion in the souls of the actors and spectators! what fire, what enthusiasm! And if, instead of an assembly only a whole people could be saturated, what activity in its functions, what a supplement to life it would derive. From an exhausted nation they might make a great and strong one, and I know more than one state in old Europe which ought to put itself under the regime of oxygen for the sake of its health!
Modeled after the "air stations" in polluted downtown Tokyo and Beijing, the first oxygen bar (the O2 Spa Bar) opened in Toronto, Canada, in 1996. The trend continued in North America and by the late 1990s, bars were in use in New York, California, Florida, Las Vegas and the Rocky Mountain region. Customers in these bars breathe oxygen through a plastic nasal cannula inserted into their nostrils. [4] Oxygen bars can now be found in many venues such as nightclubs, salons, spas, health clubs, resorts, tanning salons, restaurants, coffee houses, bars, airports, ski chalets, yoga studios, chiropractors, and casinos. They can also be found at trade shows, conventions and corporate meetings, as well as at private parties and promotional events.
Oxygen bar guests pay about one U.S. dollar per minute to inhale a percentage of oxygen greater than the normal atmospheric content of 20.9% oxygen. This oxygen is gathered from the ambient air by an industrial (non-medical) oxygen concentrator and inhaled through a nasal cannula for up to about 20 minutes. [5]
The machines used by oxygen bars or oxygen vendors differ from the typical medical-issue machine, although customers use the cannula, the rubber tube apparatus that fits around the ears and inserts in the nostrils, to breathe in the oxygen. Customers can enhance their experience by using aromatherapy scents to be added to the oxygen, such as lavender or mint. [6]
It has been claimed by alternative medicine that the human body is oxygen-deprived, and that oxygen will remove "toxins" and even cure cancer. [7] Proponents claim this practice is not only safe, but enhances health and well-being, including strengthening the immune system, enhancing concentration, reducing stress, increasing energy and alertness, lessening the effects of hangovers, headaches, and sinus problems, and generally relaxing the body. [5] It has also been alleged to help with altitude sickness. However, no long-term, well-controlled scientific studies have confirmed any of the proponents' claims. [5] Furthermore, the human body is adapted to 21 percent oxygen, and the blood exiting the lungs already has about 97 percent of the oxygen that it could carry bound to hemoglobin. Having a higher oxygen fraction in the lungs serves no purpose, and may actually be detrimental. [7]
The medical profession warns that individuals with respiratory diseases such as asthma and emphysema should not inhale too much oxygen. [5] Higher than normal oxygen partial pressure can also indirectly cause carbon dioxide narcosis in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). [8] The FDA warns that in some situations, droplets of flavoring oil can be inhaled, which may contribute to an inflammation of the lungs. Some oxygen bar companies offer safe water-based aromas for flavoring in order to maintain compliance and stay within FDA guidelines. [5]
Oxygen may also cause serious side effects at excessive doses. Although the effects of oxygen toxicity at atmospheric pressure can cause lung damage, [9] the low fraction of oxygen (30–40%) [10] and relatively brief exposures make pulmonary toxicity unlikely. [11] Nevertheless, due caution should be exercised when consuming oxygen. In the UK, the Health and Safety Executive publishes guidance on equipment (including tubing) and on staff training, as well as warning on potential hazards, and makes several recommendations to ensure safe practice, principally to minimise fire risks. [12]
Another concern is the improper maintenance of oxygen equipment. Some oxygen concentrators use clay filters which cause micro-organisms to grow, creating an additional danger that can cause lung infections. [13]
Raised concentrations of oxygen increase the risk of ignition, the rate and heat of combustion, and the difficulty of extinguishing a fire. Many materials that will not burn in air will burn in a sufficiently high partial pressure of oxygen.
In the United States, the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act defines any substance used for breathing and administered by another person as a prescription drug. Melvin Szymanski, a consumer safety officer in the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, has explained that at one end of the hose is a source of oxygen, so the individual providing the hose and turning on the supply is dispensing a prescription drug. [14] He commented that "Although oxygen bars that dispense oxygen without a prescription violate FDA regulations, the agency applies regulatory discretion to permit the individual state boards of licensing to enforce the requirements pertaining to the dispensing of oxygen." [14]
In the state of Massachusetts, oxygen bars are illlegal. [15]
The Canadian Society of Respiratory Therapists says that "As health professionals, we cannot ethically or morally support providing oxygen therapy to those who do not require it." [16]
The respiratory tract is the subdivision of the respiratory system involved with the process of conducting air to the alveoli for the purposes of gas exchange in mammals. The respiratory tract is lined with respiratory epithelium as respiratory mucosa.
Oxygen toxicity is a condition resulting from the harmful effects of breathing molecular oxygen at increased partial pressures. Severe cases can result in cell damage and death, with effects most often seen in the central nervous system, lungs, and eyes. Historically, the central nervous system condition was called the Paul Bert effect, and the pulmonary condition the Lorrain Smith effect, after the researchers who pioneered the discoveries and descriptions in the late 19th century. Oxygen toxicity is a concern for underwater divers, those on high concentrations of supplemental oxygen, and those undergoing hyperbaric oxygen therapy.
In physiology, respiration is the movement of oxygen from the outside environment to the cells within tissues, and the removal of carbon dioxide in the opposite direction to the surrounding environment.
Oxygen therapy, also referred to as supplemental oxygen, is the use of oxygen as medical treatment. Supplemental oxygen can also refer to the use of oxygen enriched air at altitude. Acute indications for therapy include hypoxemia, carbon monoxide toxicity and cluster headache. It may also be prophylactically given to maintain blood oxygen levels during the induction of anesthesia. Oxygen therapy is often useful in chronic hypoxemia caused by conditions such as severe COPD or cystic fibrosis. Oxygen can be delivered via nasal cannula, face mask, or endotracheal intubation at normal atmospheric pressure, or in a hyperbaric chamber. It can also be given through bypassing the airway, such as in ECMO therapy.
A breathing apparatus or breathing set is equipment which allows a person to breathe in a hostile environment where breathing would otherwise be impossible, difficult, harmful, or hazardous, or assists a person to breathe. A respirator, medical ventilator, or resuscitator may also be considered to be breathing apparatus. Equipment that supplies or recycles breathing gas other than ambient air in a space used by several people is usually referred to as being part of a life-support system, and a life-support system for one person may include breathing apparatus, when the breathing gas is specifically supplied to the user rather than to the enclosure in which the user is the occupant.
An oxygen mask is a mask that provides a method to transfer breathing oxygen gas from a storage tank to the lungs. Oxygen masks may cover only the nose and mouth or the entire face. They may be made of plastic, silicone, or rubber. In certain circumstances, oxygen may be delivered via a nasal cannula instead of a mask.
The nasal cannula (NC) is a device used to deliver supplemental oxygen or increased airflow to a patient or person in need of respiratory help. This device consists of a lightweight tube which on one end splits into two prongs which are placed in the nostrils curving toward the sinuses behind the nose, and from which a mixture of air and oxygen flows. The other end of the tube is connected to an oxygen supply such as a portable oxygen generator, or a wall connection in a hospital via a flowmeter. The cannula is generally attached to the patient by way of the tube hooking around the patient's ears or by an elastic headband, and the prongs curve toward the paranasal sinuses. The earliest, and most widely used form of adult nasal cannula carries 1–3 litres of oxygen per minute.
Beta2-adrenergic agonists, also known as adrenergic β2 receptor agonists, are a class of drugs that act on the β2 adrenergic receptor. Like other β adrenergic agonists, they cause smooth muscle relaxation. β2 adrenergic agonists' effects on smooth muscle cause dilation of bronchial passages, vasodilation in muscle and liver, relaxation of uterine muscle, and release of insulin. They are primarily used to treat asthma and other pulmonary disorders. Bronchodilators are considered an important treatment regime for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and are usually used in combination with short acting medications and long acting medications in a combined inhaler.
Hyperoxia is the state of being exposed to high levels of oxygen; it may refer to organisms, cells and tissues that are experiencing excessive oxygenation, or to an abnormally high oxygen concentration in an environment.
A metered-dose inhaler (MDI) is a device that delivers a specific amount of medication to the lungs in the form of a short burst of aerosolized medicine that is usually self-administered by the patient via inhalation. It is the most commonly used delivery system for treating asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and other respiratory diseases. The medication in a metered dose inhaler is most commonly a bronchodilator, corticosteroid or a combination of both for treating asthma and COPD. Other medications less commonly used but also administered by MDI are mast cell stabilizers, such as cromoglicate or nedocromil.
The respiratory system of the horse is the biological system by which a horse circulates air for the purpose of gaseous exchange.
Fluticasone furoate, sold under the brand name Flonase Sensimist among others, is a corticosteroid for the treatment of non-allergic and allergic rhinitis administered by a nasal spray. It is also available as an inhaled corticosteroid to help prevent and control symptoms of asthma. It is derived from cortisol. Unlike fluticasone propionate, which is only approved for children four years and older, fluticasone furoate is approved in children as young as two years of age when used for allergies.
An acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or acute exacerbations of chronic bronchitis (AECB), is a sudden worsening of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) symptoms including shortness of breath, quantity and color of phlegm that typically lasts for several days.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a type of progressive lung disease characterized by long-term respiratory symptoms and airflow limitation. GOLD 2024 defined COPD as a heterogeneous lung condition characterized by chronic respiratory symptoms due to abnormalities of the airways and/or alveoli (emphysema) that cause persistent, often progressive, airflow obstruction.
Heated humidified high-flow therapy, often simply called high flow therapy, is a type of respiratory support that delivers a flow of medical gas to a patient of up to 60 liters per minute and 100% oxygen through a large bore or high flow nasal cannula. Primarily studied in neonates, it has also been found effective in some adults to treat hypoxemia and work of breathing issues. The key components of it are a gas blender, heated humidifier, heated circuit, and cannula.
Medical gas therapy is a treatment involving the administration of various gases. It has been used in medicine since the use of oxygen therapy. Most of these gases are drugs, including oxygen. Many other gases, collectively known as factitious airs, were explored for medicinal value in the late eighteenth century. In addition to oxygen, medical gases include nitric oxide (NO), and helium-O2 mixtures (Heliox). Careful considerations and close monitoring needed when medical gases are in use. For the purpose of this article only gas mixtures are described.
Acute inhalation injury may result from frequent and widespread use of household cleaning agents and industrial gases. The airways and lungs receive continuous first-pass exposure to non-toxic and irritant or toxic gases via inhalation. Irritant gases are those that, on inhalation, dissolve in the water of the respiratory tract mucosa and provoke an inflammatory response, usually from the release of acidic or alkaline radicals. Smoke, chlorine, phosgene, sulfur dioxide, hydrogen chloride, hydrogen sulfide, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, and ammonia are common irritants.
Fluticasone furoate/vilanterol, sold under the brand name Breo Ellipta among others, is a combination medication for the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma. It contains fluticasone furoate, an inhaled corticosteroid, and vilanterol, an ultra-long-acting β2 agonist (ultra-LABA).
Fluticasone furoate/umeclidinium bromide/vilanterol, sold under the brand name Trelegy Ellipta among others, is a fixed-dose combination inhaled medication that is used for the maintenance treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The medications work in different ways: fluticasone furoate is an inhaled corticosteroid (ICS), umeclidinium is a long-acting muscarinic antagonist (LAMA), and vilanterol is a long-acting beta-agonist (LABA).
A breathing apparatus or breathing set is equipment which allows a person to breathe in a hostile environment where breathing would otherwise be impossible, difficult, harmful, or hazardous, or assists a person to breathe. A respirator, medical ventilator, or resuscitator may also be considered to be breathing apparatus. Equipment that supplies or recycles breathing gas other than ambient air in a space used by several people is usually referred to as being part of a life-support system, and a life-support system for one person may include breathing apparatus, when the breathing gas is specifically supplied to the user rather than to the enclosure in which the user is the occupant.
