Hydrogen-Rich Water Decreases Muscle Damage and Improves Power Endurance in Elite Athletes: A Randomized, Double-Blinded, Placebo-Controlled Trial

DB-RCT feasibility/pilot, International-level female athletes, 20 - 28 years old

Ogannisyan, et al, 2025

Outcomes:

1. Significant decreases in relative percentage (15.44 to 15.3%, p<0.05) and absolute body fat content (31.00 to 31.36 kg, p<0.05)
2. Increase in muscle mass percentage 47.48 to 47.92%, p<0.05
3. Increase in vitamin E (7.3 to 10.1 at 28 d, 15.1 mcg/mL at 35 d) and IL-10 (5.3 to 5.2, and 12.9 pg/mL, respectively) p<0.05
4. Compared to baseline, statistically significant reductions in (p<0.05):
- Creatine Kinase (CK, marker of muscle damage) 116.5 to 108.5 at 28 d, and 87.5 IU/L @ 7 days after interventionended
- Vitamin C 13.4 to 10.4 to 7.4 mcg/mL, respectively
- Beta-carotene 390.8 to 462.9 to 315.6 mcg/mL, respectively
5. Changes in CK and vitamin E remain 1 week after intervention ended
6. Statistically significant increase in max torque values by ~12.6% after warmup p<0.05

The effects of 6-month hydrogen-rich water intake on molecular and phenotypic biomarkers of aging in older adults aged 70 years and over: A randomized controlled pilot trial

RCT

Zanini, et al., 2021

Outcomes:

1. Significant treatment vs time interaction for telomere length (p<0.05). Treatment group increased telomere length (from 0.99 ± 0.15 to 1.02 ± 0.26, up 4.1% at 6-month follow up), whereas the control group lost telomere length (from 0.92 ± 0.27 to 0.79 ± 0.15, down 11.1% at 6-month follow-up).
2. Brain choline and n-acetylaspartate levels increased in the left frontal gray matter, and creatine at the right parietal white matter. Brain n-acetylaspartate at the right parietal mesial grey matter (p<0.05)
3. Human growth hormone and serum IGF-1 levels tended to rise after open-cup hydrogen water tablets intervention.
4. LDL tended to decrease in open-cup hydrogen tablets group, while triglycerides reduced in both groups
5. Serum malondialdehyde levels and ferric reducing ability of plasma strongly tended to decrease after open-cup hydrogen tablets intervention (for 48.7% and 8.4%, respectively).
6. A significant change in improved chair stand performance in open-cup hydrogen water tablets group.
7. Quality of sleep improved in open-cup hydrogen water tablets group.
8. Significant interaction for pain domain of the quality of life profile with open-cup hydrogen water tablets vs placebo (p<0.05). VAS pain score
9. TET2 expression increased in both groups, but significantly more in open-cup hydrogen water tablets group (0.81 ± 0.52 at baseline to 1.13 ± 0.82)
11) All oxidative stress and inflammation markers tended to decrease.
10. Serum magnesium levels tended to increase in both groups, although marginally significantly more in the open-cup hydrogen tablets group

The Effects of 24-Week, High-Concentration Hydrogen-Rich Water on Body Composition, Blood Lipid Profiles and Inflammation Biomarkers in Men and Women with Metabolic Syndrome: A Randomized Controlled Trial

RCT

LeBaron, et al., 2020

Outcomes: Open-cup hydrogen tablets significantly reduced oxidative stress and inflammation, while improving blood sugar control and metabolic health.

1. All oxidative stress markers (TBARS, melonaldehyde, and diene conjugates) changed in the favorable direction (P < 0.05), although TBARS was not statistically significant
2. Significantly reduced inflammation based on blood CRP, TNF-alpha, and IL-6
3. Vitamin E & C significantly increased in open-cup hydrogen water tablets group compared to control
4. reduction in total cholesterol by 18.5 mg/dL (P < 0.05).
5. triglycerides levels by ~ 47 mg/dL (P < 0.05).
6. Fasting blood glucose decreased from 121.5 ± 61.0 to 103.1 ± 33.0 mg/dL
7. 12% reduction in HbA1c (P < 0.05).
8. Reduced heart rate, body mass index, and waist-hip circumference (P <0.05).
9. Nitrites increased more in the open-cup hydrogen water tablets group (baseline 0.63 ± 0.06 to 0.68 ± 0.06 at 24 wk) vs control (0.66 ± 0.04 to 0.65 ± 0.03)

Hydrogen-rich water reduces liver fat accumulation and improves liver enzyme profiles in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: a randomized controlled pilot trial

RCT

Korovljev, et al., 2019

Outcomes:

1. Baseline total liver fat content was reduced from 284.0 ± 118.1 mM to 256.5 ± 108.3 mM after hydrogen treatment.
2. Serum AST levels dropped by 10.0%.
3. Insulin sensitivity based on HOMA2 improved by 11.1%, p < 0.05
4. Body fat reduced 4.2% vs a 0.6% gain in the placebo group, p = 0.09

Hydrogen vs. Caffeine for Improved Alertness in Sleep-Deprived Humans

Cross over study

Zanini, et al., 2020

Outcomes:

1. Increase in VAS alertness (point change = 1.7; 95% CI from 0.6 to 2.8; P = 0.003).
2. Positively impacted orientation Attention Network Test (ANT) scores from –35.8 to 40.6; P = 0.05).
3. Open-cup hydrogen tablets are comparable to caffeine for all evaluated alertness outcomes (p<0.05)

Hydrogen-rich water and caffeine for alertness and brain metabolism in sleep-deprived habitual coffee drinkers

Cross-over study

Todorovic, et al., 2021

Outcomes:

1. Open-cup hydrogen tablets and open-cup hydrogen tablets + Caffeine group took less time to complete a trail-making test than the control group
2. Open-cup hydrogen tablets or caffeine group made less mistakes in the symbol digit modalities test
3. Both open-cup hydrogen tablets and caffeine increased choline/creatinine ratios in frontal bilateral white and gray matter; open-cup hydrogen tablets elevated this ratio in the paracentral brain. So, open-cup hydrogen tablets had a more robust increase in metabolism in the paracentral region of the brain.
4. Open-cup hydrogen tablets and open-cup hydrogen water tablets + caffeine changed brain metabolism
5. Single digit modality test errors significantly reduced in open-cup hydrogen tablets or caffeine, but not open-cup hydrogen water tablets + caffeine group
6. Open-cup hydrogen tablets+caffeine equivalent or better than individual components for several alertness and brain metabolism indices p<0.05 for all findings

The Influence of High Concentration Hydrogen-Rich Water for 24-Week on Body Composition, Blood Lipid Profiles, and Inflammatory Biomarkers in Men and Women with Metabolic Syndrome: A Randomized Control Trial

RCT

Lebaron, et al., 2022

Outcomes:

1. Body mass index significantly reduced from baseline,, on average by 0.7 km/m^2
2. Waist-hip circumference ratio decreased slightly in open-cup hydrogen water tablets group compared to placebo, although p<0.05
3. Total cholesterol decreased by~27.5 mg/dL on average in the open-cup hydrogen water tablets group, no change in placebo group, with the main cholesterols going down being vLDL and LDL
4. Triglycerides dropped by ~47.4 mg/dL on average
5. Fasting glucose dropped from 121.5 +/- 61.0 to 103.1+/- 33.0 whereas it went up slightly in the placebo group
6. Inflammation markers such as TNF-alpha and IL-6 decreased
7. All other oxidative stress markers decreased, while antioxidants such as vitamins E and C decreased.
8. Systolic blood pressure decreased from 127.1 +/-7.5 to 112.4 +/- 6.4 in open-cup hydrogen water tablets group, no significant difference in control group. Diastolic went from 83.1+/- 60 to 69.7+/- 5.2 in the open-cup hydrogen water tablets group, no significant difference in the control group.
9. All markers except TBARS were statistically significant

Biological Effects of Hydrogen Water on Subjects with NAFLD: A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial

RCT

Kura, et al., 2022

Outcomes:

1. Weight decreased 1.1kg in the open-cup hydrogen tablets group (clinically, but not statistically significant), whereas in the placebo group weight went up
2. BMI was significantly decreased (p<0.05)
3. NF-kB decreased in the open-cup hydrogen tablets group but tended to increase in placebo group, although non-significant between groups.
4. Blood pressure decreased slightly (2 mmHg) in the open-cup hydrogen water tablets group, though not significant. 
5. Significant change in Triglycerides/HDL ratio (p<0.05)

28-Days Hydrogen-Rich Water Supplementation Affects Exercise Capacity in Mid-Age Overweight Women

RCT

Ostojic, et al., 2018

Outcomes:

1. improved VO2max after open-cup hydrogen tablets intervention compared to placebo: (26.2 ± 4.8 ml/kg/min vs. 24.2 ± 4.1 ml/kg/min; P = 0.03).
2. improvement of time to exhaustion and total work completed during an incremental exercise (P < 0.05).

Acute Supplementation with Molecular Hydrogen Benefits Submaximal Exercise Indices. Randomized, Double-Blinded, Placebo-Controlled Crossover Pilot Study

RCT

LeBaron, et al., 2019

Outcomes:

Significant reduction in heart rate from 125.9±25.5 to 120.8 ±25.7 Measured 1 - 9 minutes into the graded exercise session.

Minor, although statistically significant, reduction in respiratory rate during exercise. 

Hydrotherapy with hydrogen-rich water compared with RICE protocol following acute ankle sprain in professional athletes: a randomized non-inferiority pilot trial

RCT

Javorac, et al., 2020

Outcomes:

1. Pain at rest and during movement decreased to 29.9 ± 8.1 and 44.7 ± 14.9 respectively.
2. Weight bearing lunge test (WBLT) increased from 4.1 ± 1.7 to 6.5 ± 1.9.
3. Single-leg balance with eyes open and closed significantly improved for 18.4 sec.
4. Interleukin-1 beta reduced from 0.6 ± 0.4 to 0.5 ± 0.3.

The Effect of Adjuvant Therapy with Molecular Hydrogen on Endogenous Coenzyme Q10 Levels and Platelet Mitochondrial Bioenergetics in Patients with Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

DB-RCT

Sumbalova, et al., 2023

Outcomes:

1. Waist circumference decreased in the treatment group by 1.9 cm (p=0.38)
2. Treatment group had increased blood lymphocytes by 11.5% (p=0.018)
3. Some mitochondrial reprogramming were observed. CI-linked LEAK respiration decreased, CII-linked ET capacity increased
4. PL control efficiency was significantly lower in control group than in treatment group.
5. CoQ10 increased in platelets in treatment group, but not in blood or plasma
6. Platelets tocopherols in the treatment group increased 139.6%, whereas plasma group increased by 98%.
7. TBARS significantly decreased in H2 group (-11.8%, p = 0.025)

The Effects of Supersaturated Hydrogen-Rich Water Bathing on Biomarkers of Muscular Damage and Soreness Perception in Young Men Subjected to High-Intensity Eccentric Exercise

Double blind, cross over study

Todorovic, et al., 2020

Outcomes:

1. Change in biomarkers of exercise induced mascular damage elevation after 24 h of follow-up placebo vs open-cup hydrogen tablets: creatine kinase (CK) 465±295 vs 357 ± 189 U/L, Aspartate transaminase (AST) vs 32.3 ±  7.8 to 30.0 ± 8.0 U/L between placebo and open-cup hydrogen water tablets groups.
2. Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) was decreased in open-cup hydrogen water tablets group after bathing (32.7 ± 8.6% vs. 20.0 ± 12.8%; P=0.02) and at 24-hour follow-up (31.6 ± 24.3% vs. 22.4 ± 27.5%; P=0.03).

The Effects of 12-week Hydrogen-Rich Water Intake on Body Composition, Short-Chain Fatty Acids Turnover, and Brain Metabolism in Overweight Adults: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Double-blind, RCT, placebo-controlled

Korovljev et al., 2023

Outcomes:

1. Several significant reductions in body composition measures (P<0.05), i.e. in waist circumference and middle upper arm circumference
2. Weight, BMI, and % body fat tended towards reduction
3. Mild but significant reduction in triglycerides (P=0.01), while glucose tended to decrease (P=0.08)
4. Ghrelin significantly went up in the open-cup hydrogen water tablets group (P=0.02)
5. Fecal calprotectin, a measure of gut inflammation, significantly decreased (P=0.04)
6. Choline levels significantly decreased in the posterior cingulate, wheras n-acetylaspartate went significantly up (P<=0.05)
7. N-acetyl aspartate also went up in the prefrontal and thalamus (P<=0.05)

The Effects of Medium-Term Intake of Hydrogen-Rich Water on Sperm Quality Biomarkers in Norospermic and Oligospermic Men: A Randomized Controlled Pilot Trial

Pilot RCT

Stager, et al., 2023

Outcomes:

1. Sperm concentration and morphology tended to increase by 12.4 M/mL and by 3.8% live cells (P <=0.30, Cohen's effect sizes 0.36 and 0.30, respectively). 
2. Open-cup hydrogen tablets were superior to placebo with number of live sperm cells (P = 0.03). open-cup hydrogen tablets increased the percentage of live sperm by 1.1%, compared to a 6.4% drop in control group.
3. Open-cup hydrogen water tablets tended to increase sperm concentration. (P =0.25), while both interventions tended to reduce sperm volume (P = 0.18).
4. Sperm Total Antioxidant Capacity tended to increase (P = 0.07)
5. Sperm count increased by over 20 M in 2/3 oligospermic men (66.7%), whereas no oligospermic men from the control group increased their sperm to euspermic levels (P<0.01)

Hydrogen-Rich Water Upregulates Fecal Propionic Acid Levels in Overweight Adults

Pilot RCT

Korovljev et al., 2023

Outcomes:

1. After a 12-week open-cup hydrogen water tablets treatment, average fecal short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) increased were 2.10 mg/g for acetic acid (95% confidence interval [CI], -2.1 to 6.3), 2.44 mg for propionic acid (95% CI, -1.9 to 6.8), and 2.98 mg for butyric acid (95% CI, -6.9 to 12.9). p<0.05 for propionic acid, while other SCFAs tended to increase.

Molecular Hydrogen Modulates Brain Glutamate/GABA-Glutamine Cycle in Overweight Humans

Pilot with historical controls

Korovljev, et al., 2023

Outcomes:

1. Posterior cingulate gyrus glutamate and glutamate-plus-glutamine levls decreased from 8.60 ± 1.34 mM to 6.70 ± 0.16 mM (P = 0.01), and from 9.71 ± 1.10 mM to 7.37 ± 0.62 mM (P =0.01), respectively.
2. GABA in left prefrontal white matter dropped from 0.95 ± 0.99 mM to 0.29 ± 0.43; P = 0.05
3. Glutathione levels in anterior cingulate gyrus dropped from 0.65 ± 0.23 mM to 0.32 ± 0.23; P < 0.01
4. Brain taurine increased in the posterior cingulate gyrus from 0.58 ± 0.50 mM to 1.00 ± 0.23 mM, P = 0.04

Case Report: Buccal administration of hydrogen-producing blend after a mild traumatic brain injury in a professional athlete

Case report

Javorac, et al., 2019

Outcomes:

1. Total Sport Concussion Assessment Tool 2 (SCAT2) scores rose from 68 to 84 points
2. Total number of concussion symptoms decreased from 18 to 9.
3. Symptom severity score dropped to from 53 to 12 (out of 135).
4. Single-leg stance test (SLST) balance test improved by 25%

Case Report: Acute hydrotherapy with super-saturated hydrogen-rich water for ankle sprain in a professional athlete

Case report

Javorac, et al., 2020

Outcomes:

1. VAS score for pain dropped from 50 points to 20 points.
2. weight-bearing lunge test (WBLT) improved from 43.1 mm to 55.0 mm.
3. the injured ankle swelling decreased from 56.5cm to 54.9 cm

Supersaturated Hydrogen-Rich Water Hydrotherapy for Recovery of Acute Injury to the Proximal Phalanges on the 5th Toe: A Case Report

Case report

Tarnava, A., 2021

Outcomes:

1. 7-day follow up improvements: lower pain, full ability of the toe to move
2. Visual signs of swellings and bruising were reduced.