New year, new detox, right? Whether it’s green juices, fasting protocols, or teas that claim to flush you clean, January is when we collectively try to undo the indulgences of the past year. It feels equal parts hopeful and desperate—and frankly, if we’re honest, doesn’t last long.
We’ve heard these buzzwords before: activated charcoal to “bind toxins,” infrared saunas to “sweat it out,” and dry brushing to “stimulate the lymphatic system.” They each help the body’s natural detox pathways—your liver, kidneys, and lymphatic system. But what if there was a way to take detoxing a step further? What if you could directly cleanse almost all the blood flowing through your body?
EBO2 or EBOO—short for Extracorporeal Blood Oxygenation and Ozonation—offers a novel way to detox—filtering out toxins, heavy metals, built-up lipids, and cellular junk directly from your bloodstream. Physicians say it helps target some of the root causes of inflammation and chronic disease.
When I sat down with Dr. Christopher Davis, an interventional cardiologist with a passion for health optimization, his words set the stage for our conversation: “We get old and get sick because of the toxins around us.”
Davis didn’t sugarcoat the reality of modern life. While exercise, nutrition, and stress management are non-negotiables in the staying healthy hierarchy, oftentimes our environment often works against us.
“We’re talking about heavy metals—mercury, cadmium, lead, arsenic,” he explained. “Add to that insecticides and pesticides like atrazine and DDT. Then there’s plastics—BPA, phthalates, flame retardants, and the nonstick coatings on our cookware. Even the stain-resistant carpets and furniture in our homes contribute to the toxic load we carry.”
It’s quite scary to think how much toxic chemicals we eat, breathe, and drink every day. These substances don’t just float harmlessly through our bodies, nor do they simply come and go. They accumulate, creating oxidative stress, which over time triggers chronic inflammation. Davis points to chronic inflammation as the root cause of many diseases, including heart disease, autoimmune disorders, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases, and even certain cancers. “Inflammation is at the heart of it all,” he said. “And much of it is driven by these toxins.”
Dr. Davis has seen the impact of EBO2, observing significant improvements in patients with autoimmune conditions, high toxic loads, and even cancer. Plus, this cutting-edge treatment is gaining traction among high performers, athletes, and biohackers. Why? For them, optimizing recovery, slowing down aging, boosting energy, and counteracting the effects of modern environmental toxins are top priority.
Despite the buzz, EBO2 is not without its skeptics. While it’s safe when administered correctly in a clinical setting, the majority of the reported benefits are anecdotal, with limited large-scale clinical studies to back up its efficacy. As with any new modality, there’s a need for more robust, peer-reviewed research to determine its long-term effects and potential risks.
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What is EBO2?
Get cozy because this treatment requires you to be hooked to an IV in both arms for 45 minutes while approximately 2 to 4 liters of your blood—between 40-80% of your body’s supply—is drawn, filtered, treated with ozone and specific wavelengths of light, and reintroduced into your body.
Plus, there’s a container on the side where all the junk gets filtered into. It looks murky and yellowish, making it hard to miss how much toxins we carry throughout our lives.
Dr. Joseph Purita, a pioneer in regenerative medicine and one of the physicians behind EBO2’s growing popularity in the U.S., describes the process in vivid terms. “When blood comes out of the body, it’s darkish. Looks like what we call venous blood. But when it’s filtered and treated with ozone and light, it returns bright red, looking like arterial blood. It’s almost as if we had a heart-lung machine oxygenating the blood. But it’s not that we’re just giving oxygen back, because your lungs can do that. There’s a number of interesting things that are happening, and that’s why I like it.”
EBO2 is a relatively new modality you might find in a longevity, upscale IV, or functional medicine clinic with a hefty price tag ranging from $875 to $1,800. And, unfortunately for many or us, it’s likely an out-of-pocket expense.
The Science Behind EBO2
Davis and Purita explained that EBO2 leverages the body’s own mechanisms to heal and create positive adaptation by triggering hormesis—a so-called “good stress” in which small amounts of oxidative stress stimulates the body to adapt. As the blood flows through the dialysis machine it’s exposed to ozone, a process that removes toxins, heavy metals, and cellular debris and creates beneficial oxidative compounds that stimulate your body’s natural antioxidant defenses, such as glutathione and superoxide dismutase. As an additional step, exposure to specific wavelengths of light—aka photobiomodulation—further reduces inflammation, boosts oxygen delivery, and kills harmful pathogens.
The process is entirely external, and as Purita emphasized, “ozone is toxic when inhaled, so no ozone enters the body. When ozone starts mixing with plasma, it’s converted right away to hydrogen peroxide, oxygen, and a few other things.”
In addition to cleansing your blood, this process evokes several interesting cellular mechanisms. Purita added that “EBO2 stimulates pathways like AMPk, which improves energy efficiency at the cellular level.”
AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPk) is an enzyme that plays a role in energy regulation. It acts like a metabolic thermostat, detecting energy deficits in your cells and triggering mechanisms to restore balance. AMPk activation boosts cellular energy production and encourages your body to burn fat for energy. Plus, studies link AMPk activation to improved cellular repair and reduced aging markers.
EBO2 upregulates another key pathway known as your body’s antioxidant powerhouse—the nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2, (NRF2). NRF2 is a transcription factor that regulates the body’s antioxidant response. Think of it as the master regulator of detoxification and inflammation control. When activated, NRF2 turns on genes that produce antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compounds. These may help the body eliminate harmful substances, reduce oxidative stress, and protect cells from damage caused by environmental toxins and free radicals.
Dr. Davis noted that this treatment also stimulates mitochondrial biogenesis, creating more of the energy-producing powerhouses within your cells.
Benefits of EBO2
For athletes, high performers, and longevity enthusiasts, the benefits of EBO2 can mean a number of things. Improved oxygen delivery and mitochondrial health translate to better endurance, faster recovery, and a sharper mind. Reduced inflammation and oxidative stress may help improve mitochondrial function (think more energy at the cellular level). It also helps boost your immune system, and enhance recovery from workouts or illness.
Davis explained that more efficient red blood cell behavior also leads to increased oxygen delivery. “EBO2 improves how red blood cells flow through the microvascular system, reducing viscosity and enabling them to move more efficiently,” he said. “The therapy also enhances the release of oxygen from red blood cells, making oxygen delivery to tissues more effective.”
Additionally, ozone also helps stimulate nitric oxide production, which relaxes blood vessels and increases blood flow, Dr. Davis added. By addressing the mechanics of red blood cells and their oxygen-releasing capabilities, EBO2 ensures that tissues and organs receive the oxygen they need to perform optimally.
“People will typically have more energy, less brain fog, and just a sense of well-being and vitality,” Davis says, sharing how his patients often describe feeling after a session.
Subjective outcomes are not the only ones that may shift. Dr. Davis mentioned that there are a number of biomarkers and objective data he looks at to track EBO2’s efficacy. “We
can look at measures of inflammation like CRP, and other markers of oxidative stress,” he added.
Is EBO2 right for you?
EBO2 isn’t a cure-all. However, it’s a powerful tool for those looking to level up their detox protocol or address a chronic issue. It is also not something you would do every week. Dr. Purita explained that unless you have mold toxicity, Lyme disease or other autoimmune condition, he’d recommend EBO2 once a quarter or once every six months.
You could consider EBO2 if:
- You are exposed to high levels of environmental toxins.
- You are an athlete seeking faster recovery and better performance.
- You are focused on aging gracefully and maintaining vitality.
However, EBO2 may not not suitable for everyone. Davis and Purita did highlight that people with certain conditions, like G6PD deficiency, or those on blood thinners should consult their healthcare provider before trying EBO2.
One important consideration both doctors pointed out is that since ozone activates the AMPk pathway, it mobilizes and pushes glucose into cells. While this is a positive metabolic effect, it can lead to a temporary drop in blood sugar during the session.
“Because blood sugar can drop during the procedure, we recommend having a high-carbohydrate meal beforehand,” Purita says. “If blood sugar levels fall too low during the treatment, we’re prepared to address it with intravenous glucose to keep patients comfortable and safe.”
Davis adds that EBO2 is also not a standalone solution. Pairing EBO2 with tools like hyperbaric oxygen therapy, molecular hydrogen, red light therapy, and cryotherapy may create a synergistic effect that can take recovery and performance to the next level. However, there’s no one-size-fits-all protocol, and we don’t yet know what’s the most effective way to combine them.
“Everyone’s experimenting,” Dr. Davis noted, “so I’m trying to figure out the right timing to stack all the modalities.”
