An age-old therapeutic device is all the rage amongst the elite — but is it worth the hype?
Kim Kardashian says she’s changing the way she thinks about health and wellness, trading her former focus on achieving a picture-perfect body for habits she believes will support a longer, healthier life.
“I’ve switched my mentality, and now I’m coming from a place of longevity and cellular health,” the Skims founder told The Sunday Times.
Part of that change involves a centuries-old device many other celebrities and professional athletes have also turned to — despite health experts warning that the science doesn’t quite support some of its purported benefits.
Kardashian recently revealed she’s “super into hyperbaric chambers,” which deliver high concentrations of pure oxygen inside a pressurized chamber. The treatment has been touted for everything from slowing aging and improving memory and brain function to increasing longevity.
The reality star is just one of many who hype hyperbaric oxygen (HBO₂) therapy for wellness and longevity purposes. Leann Rimes has said she uses it for “repairing the brain,” while Mayim Balik has turned to it for autoimmune flare-ups.
Biohackers Gary Brecka and Bryan Johnson, both of whom have made extending their lives and staying youthful a public mission, have also dropped hundreds of thousands on personal chamber setups. And professional athletes including LeBron James and Michael Phelps have used hyperbaric therapy to fast-track recovery, as have three Philadelphia major league sports teams.
But despite the hype, there’s limited evidence that the high-tech contraption delivers the benefits often promised by wellness enthusiasts, Dr. Owen J. O’Neill, the founding medical director of the Department of Undersea & Hyperbaric Medicine at Northwell’s Phelps Hospital, told The Post.
A treatment centuries in the making
First documented in 1662, hyperbaric oxygen therapy was originally developed to address conditions including lung disease and decompression sickness in scuba divers. The modern day version uses increased air pressure to allow the body to absorb significantly more oxygen than it would under normal conditions.
The FDA has cleared hyperbaric oxygen therapy for a limited list of 14 medical conditions, including decompression sickness in scuba divers, radiation injuries, carbon monoxide poisonings, severe anemia and non-healing wounds.
“There are real biological effects from hyperbaric oxygen treatment that have created interest in aging research,” O’Neil said.
Breathing high concentrations of oxygen under increased pressure can affect the way cell’s function, stimulate the growth of new blood vessels, influence inflammation and help damaged tissues heal, he explained.
“Those are important medical effects, but they do not mean that HBO₂ treatment reverses aging or makes people live longer.”
O’Neill also cautioned that changes in biological markers — such as those seen in blood tests or brain scans — aren’t necessarily evidence that someone will stay healthier or live longer.
“For that reason, I would not recommend HBO₂ treatment to a healthy person simply for ‘anti-aging’ or longevity purposes,” he said, noting that much larger and better-designed studies are necessary.
Not all chambers are created equal
Hyperbaric chambers range from large, hard-shell machines typically used in medical settings to soft, portable “body bags” marketed for at-home use. O’Neill strongly advises against the latter.
“Many of these devices are not manufactured in the United States and may not meet the standards expected of medical hyperbaric chambers,” he said.
The FDA has also warned about the improper use of hyperbaric chambers and stressed the importance of machines meeting appropriate engineering and safety standards.
There are significant differences between at-home devices and medical-grade chambers. Many portable chambers operate at much lower pressures or use compressed air rather than 100% medical-grade oxygen, meaning the amount of oxygen delivered to the body can be vastly different.
And the potential risks aren’t merely theoretical.
A series of alarming accidents at private holistic clinics offering hyperbaric oxygent therapy have raised safety concerns.
In 2025, 5-year-old Thomas Cooper died while being treated for ADHD and sleep apnea at the Oxford Center in Detroit. A spark reportedly ignited a fire inside the pressurized chamber, killing the boy.
Three staff members were charged with second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter.
While hyperbaric oxygen therapy has been clinically proven to benefit people with specific medical conditions, experts recommended undergoing treatment only in an FDA-approved medical chamber and under the supervision of properly trained physicians.
“Oxygen under pressure is considered a drug,” O’Neill said. “Like any drug, it has a proper dose, specific reasons for using it, situations in which it should not be used, possible and significant side effects.”
Those risks can include sinus or ear injuries, seizures, drops in blood sugar drops in people with diabetes, changes in blood pressure, severe anxiety or claustrophobia inside the chamber and temporary changes in vision.
