# Injuries and Hydrogen per Oxide **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 3, 2003, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/injuries-and-hydrogen-per-oxide/179438 "2003-06-03T19:50:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Penumbra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9f8e36/32.png) [@Penumbra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Penumbra)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2003, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/injuries-and-hydrogen-per-oxide/179438/1 "2003-06-03T19:50:16Z")
I was playing volleyball outside today during my lunch break and injured my foot. The sand we were playing on was very hard and when I jumped up to block the ball the skin on the sole of my foot ripped off! My foot didn’t bleed (it ripped off the hard top layer of skin revealing soft pink underskin) but it hurt like hell. I immediatley went home and washed all the sand from the wound and then doused it with Hydrogen per Oxide which invoked serious pain and nashing of teeth. When the Hydrogen per Oxide touched the wound it began to fizzle and become foamy white. It even fizzled as it ran down the sink drain. There was also a noticable odor when I poured the chemical. Why does hydrogen per oxide behave in this way? What is it acutally doing when it foams up? Is it killing bacteria? Aside from washing the wound, dousing it with hydrogen per oxide, covering it in Neosporein and dressing it with a bandage, what else should I do in order to take care of my foot? Should I soak it in water tonight to make sure all the sand has been washed away? ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2003, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/injuries-and-hydrogen-per-oxide/179438/2 "2003-06-03T20:07:48Z")
[Why does hydrogen peroxide foam when you put it on a cut?](http://howstuffworks.lycoszone.com/question115.htm) > [@](#): > > \*\*The reason why it foams is because blood and cells contain an enzyme called catalase. Since a cut or scrape contains both blood and damaged cells, there is lots of catalase floating around. > > … > > Hydrogen peroxide does not foam in the bottle or on your skin because there is no catalase to help the reaction to occur. Hydrogen peroxide is stable at room temperature.\*\* ---
**Author:** ![Boo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7feea3/32.png) [@Boo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boo)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2003, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/injuries-and-hydrogen-per-oxide/179438/3 "2003-06-03T20:12:20Z")
the “fizzle” is what makes hydrogen peroxide a good wound cleaner…that “fizzle” action is helping to clean the wound and it also kills bacteria. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2003, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/injuries-and-hydrogen-per-oxide/179438/4 "2003-06-03T20:13:01Z")
The fizzing is from an enzyme in your blood, called catalase - it breaks hydrogen peroxide down into water and oxygen gas. ([Cite](http://intro.chem.okstate.edu/ChemSource/Enzymes/enzyme4.html)) I’ve found a couple sources that say it’s probably too irritating to put directly on an open wound, but it can be used around the area: [Mayo Clinic’s wound care page](http://www.mayoclinic.com/invoke.cfm?objectid=A0A3E617-3B02-4AC5-98E945C7B7AA909F) ---
**Author:** ![barbitu8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@barbitu8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barbitu8)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2003, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/injuries-and-hydrogen-per-oxide/179438/5 "2003-06-03T21:04:38Z")
From the Mayo link: > [@](#): > > Cover the wound. Exposure to air speeds healing, but bandages can help keep the wound clean and keep harmful bacteria out. That link is over a year old. I’ve recently read that exposure to air does not speed healing and, in fact, slows healing. The air causes a scab to form and that scab falls away, and a new one forms, etc. Using a bandage over a wound prevents scab forming and speeds healing. I don’t have a link off-hand. Sorry. ---
**Author:** ![barbitu8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@barbitu8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barbitu8)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2003, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/injuries-and-hydrogen-per-oxide/179438/6 "2003-06-03T21:08:26Z")
[http://wellnessletter.com/html/su/suSubscribeWME.html](http://wellnessletter.com/html/su/suSubscribeWME.html) > [@](#): > > • Don’t use hydrogen peroxide to clean wounds—it’s no more effective than soap and water and it can cause skin problems. (Tip #239)