Blog

What is Mild Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (mHBOT)

It is a non-invasive treatment that significantly increases the amount of oxygen in your body through a specific mechanism:

Here's how mHBOT increases oxygen in the body:

Increased Atmospheric Pressure:
- In an mHBOT chamber, the air pressure is raised to a level higher than normal atmospheric pressure, typically around 1.2 to 1.35 times sea level.
- This increased pressure follows Henry’s Law of Physics, which states that more gas will dissolve into a liquid when the pressure of that gas above the liquid is increased.
- In the context of your body, the higher pressure in the chamber forces more oxygen to dissolve directly into your blood plasma (the liquid component of your blood).
Breathing Enriched Oxygen:
- While inside the mHBOT chamber, you often breathe air with a higher oxygen concentration than the 21% found in normal air. Under mHBOT, the body’s oxygen intake increases by 35%.
- This enriched oxygen, combined with the increased pressure, creates a steep gradient, pushing even more oxygen into your bloodstream.

The Synergistic Effect:

The combination of elevated atmospheric pressure and breathing concentrated oxygen leads to a profound increase in the total oxygen available to your body. Here’s why this is so beneficial:

Oxygen Beyond Haemoglobin: Under normal conditions, the oxygen in your blood is carried by haemoglobin within red blood cells. However, haemoglobin can only carry a limited amount of oxygen (it becomes saturated). mHBOT bypasses this limitation by dissolving oxygen directly into the plasma.
Deeper Tissue Penetration: Dissolved oxygen in the plasma is much smaller than red blood cells. This allows it to reach areas with compromised blood flow, such as injured tissues, inflamed regions, or places where capillaries are narrowed. Red blood cells might struggle to reach these “starved” areas, but the dissolved oxygen can effectively penetrate and supply vital oxygen to those cells.
Enhanced Cellular Function and Healing: Flooding the body with this extra oxygen has numerous positive effects:
- It provides the necessary fuel for cellular metabolism and energy production (ATP).
- It promotes the growth of new blood vessels (angiogenesis).
- It reduces swelling and inflammation.
- It boosts the immune system’s ability to fight off infections.
- It stimulates tissue repair and regeneration.

In essence, mHBOT supercharges your body’s natural healing processes by delivering oxygen to every cell, even those that are typically difficult to reach, optimising their function and promoting recovery.

Ready to try it? Our private Contrast Therapy Room at Elements Float Wellness Centre is the perfect place to experience the benefits firsthand. Book your session today and take the plunge into wellness!