Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy: What It’s FDA-Approved For and Why Experts Are Sounding the Alarm
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is having a moment — and not a good one. Once confined to hospitals treating decompression sickness, carbon monoxide poisoning and stubborn wounds, the treatment is now showing up in med spas, chiropractic offices, wellness studios and even celebrity homes, marketed as a cure for everything from autism to wrinkles.
The expansion has come with a body count. A 5-year-old boy burned to death inside a chamber in Michigan in January. A physical therapist was killed in his own chamber in July. Industry experts warn the toll will grow as unregulated chambers proliferate across the country.
What Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Is and How It Works
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy, or HBOT, involves breathing 100% oxygen inside a pressurized chamber at up to two and a half times normal air pressure. The air we typically breathe contains about 21% oxygen. The increased pressure and higher oxygen concentration help the lungs absorb more oxygen and deliver it more efficiently to organs and tissues throughout the body.
Sessions usually last 90 minutes to two hours. Some conditions are resolved in a single session, while others require repeated treatments over days or weeks. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration began regulating hyperbaric chambers in 1976 and adopted rules for their use in 1979, according to Harvard Health Publishing.
FDA-Approved Uses for HBOT
The FDA has approved hyperbaric oxygen therapy for a specific set of serious medical conditions. These include wounds that are difficult to heal — such as diabetic foot ulcers — along with infections and swelling, severe burns, frostbite, gas gangrene and carbon monoxide poisoning. It is also approved for decompression sickness, sudden unexplained hearing loss, severe anemia when transfusions cannot be used and tissue damage from radiation treatment.
Some treatment centers and wellness businesses now market HBOT for conditions the FDA has not approved, including Alzheimer’s disease, autism, cancer, Lyme disease, ADHD, sleep apnea and anti-aging. The scientific evidence supporting these uses is thin to nonexistent.
The Unregulated Expansion of Hyperbaric Chambers
According to The Guardian, hyperbaric chambers are increasingly available in wellness businesses operated by people without medical degrees or sufficient training, including chiropractors, physical therapists and alternative medicine practitioners. Without evidence, these businesses often promote HBOT as a cure-all for conditions ranging from Alzheimer’s to ADHD to wrinkles.
John S. Peters, a health care executive and executive director of the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society — the professional organization that runs the U.S. hyperbaric oxygen facility accreditation program — described the current landscape bluntly in December 2025: “It’s absolute anarchy and chaos.”
The American Medical Association recommends that all states require HBOT facilities to be accredited by the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society, but no state currently does. Peters estimated that unsafe hyperbaric chambers may now number in the tens of thousands across the country.
Celebrity and media endorsements have accelerated the spread. Justin Bieber and Kendall Jenner have installed chambers in their homes. Podcaster Joe Rogan has called the treatment “phenomenal for everything,” per The Guardian. U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has also recommended it.
Known Safety Risks and Side Effects
HBOT is considered safe when administered in properly regulated medical settings for FDA-approved conditions. Complications are uncommon but can include ear and sinus pain, ruptured eardrums, temporary vision changes and, in rare cases, lung collapse. The therapy should not be given to people with a collapsed lung, certain lung diseases such as COPD, cystic fibrosis or emphysema, a fever or cold or recent ear injuries or surgery.
Fire is the most acute danger in unregulated settings. The Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society estimates that seven people have died since 2009 due to fire, suffocation or other adverse events in HBOT chambers. Experts expect that number to climb as the therapy spreads further into med spas, wellness centers, private homes and other non-medical settings.
The Deaths That Exposed the Dangers
On Jan. 31, 2025, 5-year-old Thomas Cooper was killed when a fire started inside the hyperbaric chamber where he was receiving treatment at the Oxford Center in Troy, a northern suburb of Detroit. According to family attorney James Harrington, who spoke to NBC News, Thomas’ mother, Annie Cooper, rushed toward the chamber when the fire ignited, burning her arm in an unsuccessful attempt to save her son as he burned alive in front of her.
The Michigan attorney general alleges that on the day Thomas died, the Oxford Center did not have a physician or safety coordinator on site, and the HBOT technician was not properly trained, according to The Guardian.
Peters told the publication: “In the Michigan incident there was no physician oversight when they oriented the parents. There was no mention of risks and benefits and consent … the risk is death. It’s a total failure.”
In July, it happened again. Walter Foxcroft, a physical therapist, was killed in a fire inside his own chamber.
Why Oxygen Seems Harmless — and Why That’s the Problem
Oxygen is intuitive to see as beneficial. We need it to survive, so more feels like it should be better. But hyperbaric chambers are complex medical devices, and there are many ways the therapy can go wrong in untrained hands. The pure oxygen environment combined with high pressure creates serious fire and explosion risks that demand specialized training, proper equipment and medical oversight.
Alternatives to Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy
For people interested in increasing their oxygen intake without the risks of an unregulated chamber, several alternatives exist. An oxygen concentrator is a medical device that separates nitrogen from ambient air, allowing the user to breathe up to 95% pure oxygen. Concentrators are portable and accessible for home use, though they are less effective than HBOT for certain conditions.
For more information: How to Tell if a Wellness Retreat Is Legit Before You Spend Thousands and Some Red Flags
Exercise With Oxygen Therapy, known as EWOT, combines cardiovascular exercise with oxygen-enriched air. Results may vary and the approach requires both effort and equipment.
Breathing techniques such as Pranayama, Buteyko or the Wim Hof method can improve oxygen utilization naturally with no equipment required. The benefits tend to be subtle and depend on consistent practice.
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