"Hyperbaric oxygen therapy": a new "secret" to improve test scores?
2022-07-05
Although hyperbaric oxygen therapy can improve candidates' brain fatigue, there is no rigorous evidence to prove that it can improve performance. The improvement of examination results not only requires a clear mind, but also is related to factors such as knowledge reserve and effort. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is not the "secret" of taking an examination. —— Zhang Yi, deputy chief physician of hyperbaric oxygen Department of Beijing Chaoyang Hospital Affiliated to Capital Medical University In June and July every year, with the advent of the high school entrance examination, the college entrance examination and the final examination of primary and secondary school students, hyperbaric oxygen therapy is always mentioned by many parents. Improve sleep, improve memory, alleviate brain fatigue... Hyperbaric oxygen treatment in the mouth of parents has become a "secret collection" for examination. In order to allow children to receive hyperbaric oxygen treatment at any time, some parents even do not hesitate to purchase household hyperbaric oxygen cabin. The reporter saw on a domestic e-commerce platform that there are more than 10 different types of related equipment on sale, with prices ranging from several thousand yuan to ten thousand yuan. So, does hyperbaric oxygen therapy really help children improve their exam scores? In response to this problem, the reporter of science and technology daily interviewed relevant experts. It can increase the content of physical dissolved oxygen in the blood Hyperbaric oxygen therapy, as its name suggests, refers to a method in which the body inhales pure oxygen or high concentration oxygen in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber higher than 1 atmosphere to treat diseases. Zhang Yi, deputy chief physician of hyperbaric oxygen Department of Beijing Chaoyang Hospital Affiliated to Capital Medical University, said in an interview with science and Technology Daily that the brain is the organ with the largest demand for oxygen in the human body. The weight of normal human brain accounts for 2% to 3% of the total body weight, but its oxygen consumption accounts for 20% to 30% of the total body oxygen consumption. "There is a saying that 'the brain cannot live without oxygen protection', and the brain is extremely sensitive to hypoxia." Zhang Yi said that when the human brain has symptoms of hypoxia, oxygen supplementation is the fastest way to recover. Compared with ordinary oxygen inhalation, hyperbaric oxygen chamber is better at supplying oxygen to the brain. According to Zhang Yi, there are two forms of oxygen in the blood: one is bound oxygen, that is, after oxygen enters the blood, most of it will combine with hemoglobin in red blood cells; The other is physical dissolved oxygen, that is, after oxygen enters the blood, it does not combine with hemoglobin in red blood cells, but is dissolved in plasma. Under normal circumstances, the proportion of physical dissolved oxygen in the total oxygen content of blood is very low and almost negligible. The human body supplies oxygen to various tissues and organs, mainly providing conjugated oxygen. "Ordinary oxygen inhalation, that is, we usually use nasal catheter oxygen inhalation, can only improve the content of bound oxygen in the blood, and the degree of improvement is limited." Zhang Yi said that if people inhale oxygen with purity of 85% to 99% in hyperbaric oxygen chamber, not only the content of bound oxygen in blood will increase, but more importantly, the content of physical dissolved oxygen will also increase with the increase of pressure. Even when a certain pressure is reached, only physical dissolved oxygen can meet the needs of the body. The data shows that under the hyperbaric oxygen chamber environment, the blood oxygen content in the human body can reach several times or even dozens of times that of oxygen absorption under normal pressure. It can be said that hyperbaric oxygen therapy has more prominent advantages in improving cerebral hypoxia. There is no rigorous evidence that it can improve performance Hyperbaric oxygen therapy was first known by the public, thanks to its wide application in the treatment of carbon monoxide poisoning. Carbon monoxide has a stronger ability to bind hemoglobin than oxygen. Therefore, when the human body inhales a large amount of carbon monoxide gas, carbon monoxide entering the blood will bind hemoglobin in a large amount, so as to reduce the content of bound oxygen in the blood, resulting in hypoxia symptoms in various tissues and organs of the human body, which can be life-threatening in serious cases. With the help of the high-pressure and high concentration oxygen environment in the hyperbaric oxygen chamber, the content of bound oxygen and physical dissolved oxygen in the blood can be significantly increased, so as to supply oxygen to various tissues and organs of the human body in time, and finally "drive" carbon monoxide out of the blood. However, with the significant improvement of people's living standards, carbon monoxide poisoning caused by coal combustion is not common. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy began to serve more patients with cerebral hypoxia symptoms and provide them with restorative treatment. Brain hypoxia sounds far away from people's daily life, but in fact, for students and office workers who often use their brain intensively, brain hypoxia is a common situation they often encounter. According to Zhang Yi, when people use their brain continuously for a long time and with high intensity, they often have symptoms of cerebral hypoxia, mainly including less sleep at night, difficulty falling asleep, more dreams after falling asleep, easy to wake up, difficulty falling asleep after waking up, dizziness, inattention, slower response, decreased memory and appetite, and irritability. Every year, during the examination season, many parents of candidates consult Zhang Yi, hoping that hyperbaric oxygen therapy can alleviate the symptoms of children's brain hypoxia and improve their learning status. Zhang Yi said that there is indeed a certain scientific basis for using hyperbaric oxygen therapy to improve candidates' brain fatigue. "However, it should be pointed out that not all candidates need hyperbaric oxygen treatment, but if candidates do have symptoms of hypoxia and brain fatigue, especially if they cannot be relieved by ordinary oxygen inhalation, they can consider hyperbaric oxygen treatment." Zhang Yi stressed that the child needs to be evaluated by professionals before receiving treatment to rule out situations that are not suitable for treatment. If there is any discomfort during the treatment process, it should also be reported to the staff in a timely manner. However, Zhang Yi reminded parents that although hyperbaric oxygen therapy is helpful in alleviating brain fatigue, it is necessary to prevent and alleviate brain fatigue, and children should not rely entirely on hyperbaric oxygen therapy. Children should also take appropriate physical exercise and pay attention to the combination of work and rest. As for whether hyperbaric oxygen treatment can directly improve exam scores, Zhang Yi said that there is no rigorous evidence to prove that it can improve scores. To answer this question, we need to design scientific large-scale research. The improvement of examination results not only requires a clear mind, but also is related to factors such as knowledge reserve and effort. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is not the "secret" of taking an examination. Domestic equipment can not meet the pressure required for treatment In addition to the hyperbaric oxygen chamber configured in the hospital, relevant equipment such as home hyperbaric oxygen chamber has also appeared in the market in recent years. Because the candidates of middle school and college entrance examination were busy reviewing and had no time to go to the hospital for hyperbaric oxygen treatment, parents bought relevant household equipment for their children. "Strictly speaking, these devices cannot be called hyperbaric oxygen chamber, and it is more appropriate to call them 'micro pressure oxygen chamber' or 'soft oxygen chamber', because these devices cannot meet the pressure required for hyperbaric oxygen treatment." Zhang Yi said that generally, the pressure increased by household equipment does not exceed 0.3 atmospheres, while the pressure required for hyperbaric oxygen treatment is usually 1.6 to 2 atmospheres. "At present, the most widely used micro pressure oxygen chambers are in plateau areas, because altitude hypoxia is mainly caused by low air pressure. For example, the atmospheric pressure in Lhasa, Tibet is 0.65 atmospheres. If you can increase it by 0.3 atmospheres, it will be basically close to the plain area, and the human hypoxia will naturally be improved." Zhang Yi said. So, is there any difference between the hyperbaric oxygen treatment plan of students with cerebral hypoxia symptoms and patients with other diseases? "When students are treated with hyperbaric oxygen, the pressure of the hyperbaric oxygen chamber can be appropriately reduced, such as keeping its pressure at about 1.6 atmospheres, while boosting the pressure slowly, so as to reduce the possibility of discomfort such as ear pain." Zhang Yi said. In addition, Zhang Yi reminded that children with pulmonary diseases such as pulmonary bullae and severe emphysema should not be treated with hyperbaric oxygen. At the same time, children with hypertension should control their blood pressure below 160/100 mmHg before hyperbaric oxygen treatment. For children without basic diseases receiving hyperbaric oxygen treatment, some parents worry about whether there will be side effects and oxygen poisoning? Zhang Yi explained that oxygen poisoning refers to inhaling oxygen that exceeds a certain pressure and time, resulting in physiological disorders and organ damage. At present, most of the conventional hyperbaric oxygen treatment schemes in the hospital are 1.6 to 2 atmospheres, and the oxygen inhalation time is 60 minutes, once a day. In theory, it generally will not cause oxygen poisoning. However, she still stressed that anyone should be diagnosed and evaluated by a professional doctor before receiving hyperbaric oxygen treatment, and there is a real need for further treatment. (outlook new era)
Edit：Yuanqi Tang Responsible editor：Xiao Yu
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