Ozone is being called smog by government agencies. This is nothing but unadulterated misinformation meant to distract Americans from the true cause of smog, older trucks and factories.
May 11, 2006 (Press Release) --
As Americans, we pride ourselves on sticking up for the "little guy" and righting wrongs whenever we can. What then should we do when we find our own government spreading misinformation and lies about a subject, in this case, ozone? The goal of this article is to try and set the record straight and "right the wrongs" for this much maligned molecule know as ozone.
A recent article made the claim "Here's how to create your own personal Stage 2 Smog Alert: Buy an indoor air purifier.” This article went on to quote Barbara Riordan, acting chairperson of the California Air Resources Board (ARB) who stated "Marketed as a strong defense against indoor air pollution, they (ozone generators) emit ozone, the same chemical that the ARB and … U.S. Environmental Protection Agency have been trying to eliminate from our air for decades." Our own EPA has branded ozone a "toxic gas".
First let me start by stating that I am not advocating the use of ozone generators or high ozone producing (more than 5 mgs hr) air purifiers in otherwise clean environments. Ozone generators have a purpose, for smoke or mold remediation in unoccupied rooms or in areas with smoky environments. (casino's for instance) The ozone will oxidize the harmful second hand smoke and create oxygen in that situation, and that's a good thing.
What is ozone? Ozone is three oxygen molecules. When ozone comes in contact with a contaminant, it releases one of its three oxygen molecules which will then oxidize the contaminant, in other words, render it harmless. If no contaminants are found, it reverts back to oxygen in around 30 minutes or so. Ozone is used quite successfully to kill harmful microorganisms in the water, air, and even the blood. If in fact ozone were a “toxic gas” as stated by the EPA, why then do virtually all municipal water treatment plants use ozone to rid the water of harmful substances? Surely they are not putting "smog" or toxins into the water, are they? And how about the 600 plus German medical studies that outline how ozone has successfully cured everything from cancer to AIDS without any serious side effects? A recent article in BiologyNews.net stated:
In fact numerous effective cancer cures have been brought forth over the years, yet they never seem to get to market. This is especially true for ozone therapy, which was started in Germany in 1892, and came to the US in 1898. Since this therapy precedes the formation of the FDA, and happens to be one of the safest therapies on the market, under the law it has a grand fathered approval status. Yet the FDA routinely violates the law by jailing those who perform ozone therapy. Chemically ozone destroys cancer through multiple mechanisms. First of all malignant tumors lack the protective antioxidant enzymes catalase, glutathione peroxides, selenium methionine peroxidase, and superoxide dismutase, which protect healthy cells. When ozone reacts with the lipid membrane of the cells a lipid peroxide is formed. Hydrogen peroxide is also formed by the reaction of ozone with water. These peroxides enter in to all cells. The antioxidant enzymes in the healthy cells break down the peroxides in to water and oxygen. Cancer cells on the other hand cannot break down these peroxides, thus these cells swell up and burst. Secondly the peroxides stimulate white blood cell activity. In fact NK (natural killer) cells use peroxide in the same manner to kill cancer cells. Ozone, being a strong oxidizer, kills cancer microbes, and carcinogens, such as xenoestrogens. As far as safety goes, a study done in Germany followed over 6.5 million doses of ozone given for therapy. There were slightly over 30adverse reactions reported, mostly due to improper administration. Therefore, no therapy can match effectiveness and safety of ozone for cancer treatment. Which is also why the medical establishment has fought so hard to keep it from the market.
Surely if ozone were toxic, it would have no positive therapeutic applications, right? Ozone is also used successfully to remove odors and smoke. For instance, if something dies and decomposes in your home, the awful stench will penetrate the walls. Ammonia or Chlorine will not remove the odor because some of the microorganism that are causing the odor will survive and multiply. Ozone however in very high concentrations can kill those microorganisms and oxidize the air to remove all traces of odor. If ozone is so useful and beneficial, why is called a "toxic gas" and "smog"? Here are a few possible explanations:
Reason #1. To distract Americans from the true cause of smog, older trucks and factories that lack emissions controls. Older diesel trucks, cars, and older factories cannot be fit with modern air emission controls. Thus, they produce most of the hydrocarbons, VOC's, and nitrous oxides that constitute smog. When these man made pollutants come in contact with sunlight, mother nature creates ozone to try and remove (oxidize) these harmful substances from the air. The misinformation is calling smog “ozone” rather than “hydrocarbon smog” or just smog. “Ozone alerts” are another form of misinformation. They should be “Hydrocarbon Alerts’.
Let’s examine what the EPA has to say about cars and ozone:
“Ozone is not emitted directly but is formed in the atmosphere through a complex set of chemical reactions involving hydrocarbons, oxides of nitrogen, and sunlight. The rate at which the reactions proceed is related to both temperature and intensity of the sunlight. Because of this, problematic ozone levels occur most frequently on hot summer afternoons. Hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides come from a great variety of industrial and combustion processes. In typical urban areas, at least half of those pollutants come from cars, buses, trucks, and off-highway mobile sources such as construction vehicles and boats. In fact, a major portion of ozone-forming hydrocarbons can be attributed to a relatively small number of “super-dirty” cars whose emission control systems are not working properly.”
Actually, "pre 1994 trucks and old factories that are not required by the US government to have ANY emissions controls" would be more accurate than “super-dirty cars whose emissions control systems are not working properly”. Old cars do put out around 7 times more smog than new cars, that pales in comparison to the pollution coming from old diesel trucks and old factories!. Some reports claim that diesel exhaust from old trucks accounts for most of the ozone forming hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides in the air. In California, some of the locals call the major highways “the diesel death zone.” According to the California ARB, only around a third of big rigs are new enough to be outfitted with modern diesel particulate filters; engines before 1994 can neither be retrofitted nor upgraded. That means two thirds of the trucks in California are responsible for most of the smog in that state! The bottom line is this, it would cost too much money to replace two thirds of the older trucks with newer models, not to mention the older cars and older factories that are causing the smog problems in California and around the world. The governments game plan seems to be to try and convince everyone that ozone is the cause of smog and be done with it. Unfortunately, it looks like they are going to succeed, and the true causes of smog will never be addressed.
Reason #2. Ozone therapy, particularly in Germany, is showing very promising results in the cure of cancer and AIDS, two of the pharmaceutical and drug companies cash cows. You can’t patent ozone, it’s cheap, natural, and effective. Big business has a vested interest here. They don’t want to pay the huge cost of replacing old plants or trucks with modern, low emission plants and vehicles. Secondly, nobody wants to take a hit in their stock portfolio if ozone therapy becomes mainstream and proves to be an natural, effective cure for most disease.
The bottom line is this. When it comes to ozone, don’t believe the hype, believe the research studies from reputable sources and the science. If we really want to reduce smog, the U.S. economy will have to take a hit because the solutions are not be cheap. Can you imagine the cost of replacing two thirds of all trucks and the older factories? To most politicians, that’s just not a viable option, especially given the amount of PAC money they receive from "big business". So we’ll just have to continue living with smog and without cheap, effective cancer and AIDS cures I guess. It also looks like we’ll also have to continue with the misinformation and lies from the powers that be. What a shame.
A recent article made the claim "Here's how to create your own personal Stage 2 Smog Alert: Buy an indoor air purifier.” This article went on to quote Barbara Riordan, acting chairperson of the California Air Resources Board (ARB) who stated "Marketed as a strong defense against indoor air pollution, they (ozone generators) emit ozone, the same chemical that the ARB and … U.S. Environmental Protection Agency have been trying to eliminate from our air for decades." Our own EPA has branded ozone a "toxic gas".
First let me start by stating that I am not advocating the use of ozone generators or high ozone producing (more than 5 mgs hr) air purifiers in otherwise clean environments. Ozone generators have a purpose, for smoke or mold remediation in unoccupied rooms or in areas with smoky environments. (casino's for instance) The ozone will oxidize the harmful second hand smoke and create oxygen in that situation, and that's a good thing.
What is ozone? Ozone is three oxygen molecules. When ozone comes in contact with a contaminant, it releases one of its three oxygen molecules which will then oxidize the contaminant, in other words, render it harmless. If no contaminants are found, it reverts back to oxygen in around 30 minutes or so. Ozone is used quite successfully to kill harmful microorganisms in the water, air, and even the blood. If in fact ozone were a “toxic gas” as stated by the EPA, why then do virtually all municipal water treatment plants use ozone to rid the water of harmful substances? Surely they are not putting "smog" or toxins into the water, are they? And how about the 600 plus German medical studies that outline how ozone has successfully cured everything from cancer to AIDS without any serious side effects? A recent article in BiologyNews.net stated:
In fact numerous effective cancer cures have been brought forth over the years, yet they never seem to get to market. This is especially true for ozone therapy, which was started in Germany in 1892, and came to the US in 1898. Since this therapy precedes the formation of the FDA, and happens to be one of the safest therapies on the market, under the law it has a grand fathered approval status. Yet the FDA routinely violates the law by jailing those who perform ozone therapy. Chemically ozone destroys cancer through multiple mechanisms. First of all malignant tumors lack the protective antioxidant enzymes catalase, glutathione peroxides, selenium methionine peroxidase, and superoxide dismutase, which protect healthy cells. When ozone reacts with the lipid membrane of the cells a lipid peroxide is formed. Hydrogen peroxide is also formed by the reaction of ozone with water. These peroxides enter in to all cells. The antioxidant enzymes in the healthy cells break down the peroxides in to water and oxygen. Cancer cells on the other hand cannot break down these peroxides, thus these cells swell up and burst. Secondly the peroxides stimulate white blood cell activity. In fact NK (natural killer) cells use peroxide in the same manner to kill cancer cells. Ozone, being a strong oxidizer, kills cancer microbes, and carcinogens, such as xenoestrogens. As far as safety goes, a study done in Germany followed over 6.5 million doses of ozone given for therapy. There were slightly over 30adverse reactions reported, mostly due to improper administration. Therefore, no therapy can match effectiveness and safety of ozone for cancer treatment. Which is also why the medical establishment has fought so hard to keep it from the market.
Surely if ozone were toxic, it would have no positive therapeutic applications, right? Ozone is also used successfully to remove odors and smoke. For instance, if something dies and decomposes in your home, the awful stench will penetrate the walls. Ammonia or Chlorine will not remove the odor because some of the microorganism that are causing the odor will survive and multiply. Ozone however in very high concentrations can kill those microorganisms and oxidize the air to remove all traces of odor. If ozone is so useful and beneficial, why is called a "toxic gas" and "smog"? Here are a few possible explanations:
Reason #1. To distract Americans from the true cause of smog, older trucks and factories that lack emissions controls. Older diesel trucks, cars, and older factories cannot be fit with modern air emission controls. Thus, they produce most of the hydrocarbons, VOC's, and nitrous oxides that constitute smog. When these man made pollutants come in contact with sunlight, mother nature creates ozone to try and remove (oxidize) these harmful substances from the air. The misinformation is calling smog “ozone” rather than “hydrocarbon smog” or just smog. “Ozone alerts” are another form of misinformation. They should be “Hydrocarbon Alerts’.
Let’s examine what the EPA has to say about cars and ozone:
“Ozone is not emitted directly but is formed in the atmosphere through a complex set of chemical reactions involving hydrocarbons, oxides of nitrogen, and sunlight. The rate at which the reactions proceed is related to both temperature and intensity of the sunlight. Because of this, problematic ozone levels occur most frequently on hot summer afternoons. Hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides come from a great variety of industrial and combustion processes. In typical urban areas, at least half of those pollutants come from cars, buses, trucks, and off-highway mobile sources such as construction vehicles and boats. In fact, a major portion of ozone-forming hydrocarbons can be attributed to a relatively small number of “super-dirty” cars whose emission control systems are not working properly.”
Actually, "pre 1994 trucks and old factories that are not required by the US government to have ANY emissions controls" would be more accurate than “super-dirty cars whose emissions control systems are not working properly”. Old cars do put out around 7 times more smog than new cars, that pales in comparison to the pollution coming from old diesel trucks and old factories!. Some reports claim that diesel exhaust from old trucks accounts for most of the ozone forming hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides in the air. In California, some of the locals call the major highways “the diesel death zone.” According to the California ARB, only around a third of big rigs are new enough to be outfitted with modern diesel particulate filters; engines before 1994 can neither be retrofitted nor upgraded. That means two thirds of the trucks in California are responsible for most of the smog in that state! The bottom line is this, it would cost too much money to replace two thirds of the older trucks with newer models, not to mention the older cars and older factories that are causing the smog problems in California and around the world. The governments game plan seems to be to try and convince everyone that ozone is the cause of smog and be done with it. Unfortunately, it looks like they are going to succeed, and the true causes of smog will never be addressed.
Reason #2. Ozone therapy, particularly in Germany, is showing very promising results in the cure of cancer and AIDS, two of the pharmaceutical and drug companies cash cows. You can’t patent ozone, it’s cheap, natural, and effective. Big business has a vested interest here. They don’t want to pay the huge cost of replacing old plants or trucks with modern, low emission plants and vehicles. Secondly, nobody wants to take a hit in their stock portfolio if ozone therapy becomes mainstream and proves to be an natural, effective cure for most disease.
The bottom line is this. When it comes to ozone, don’t believe the hype, believe the research studies from reputable sources and the science. If we really want to reduce smog, the U.S. economy will have to take a hit because the solutions are not be cheap. Can you imagine the cost of replacing two thirds of all trucks and the older factories? To most politicians, that’s just not a viable option, especially given the amount of PAC money they receive from "big business". So we’ll just have to continue living with smog and without cheap, effective cancer and AIDS cures I guess. It also looks like we’ll also have to continue with the misinformation and lies from the powers that be. What a shame.
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