Hydrogen Therapy Speeds Recovery from Sports Injuries

TL;DR

Adding hydrogen treatments to standard care for muscle and tendon injuries in athletes can improve recovery by reducing inflammation and swelling.

Key Finding

Athletes who received oral and topical molecular hydrogen in addition to standard injury treatment showed significantly greater reductions in limb swelling and plasma viscosity over one week compared to those receiving standard treatment alone.

Summary

This small study looked at whether molecular hydrogen (H2)—a gas that may reduce inflammation and oxidative stress (cellular damage from oxygen)—could help athletes recover faster from muscle and tendon strains. Twelve professional athletes with acute muscle or tendon injuries received either standard treatment alone (rest, ice, compression, elevation, and exercises) or standard treatment plus oral hydrogen tablets and topical hydrogen-rich packs for one week. The hydrogen group showed greater reductions in blood viscosity (thickness) and limb swelling compared to the control group.

Practical Takeaway

While this study suggests molecular hydrogen may support recovery from muscle and tendon injuries in athletes, the sample size was very small (12 people) and limited to one week of observation. More research with larger groups and longer follow-up periods would be needed before drawing firm conclusions about whether hydrogen water or hydrogen supplements meaningfully improve injury recovery in real-world settings.

Abstract (excerpt)

Muscle and tendon strains (MTS) are often accompanied by subsequent tissue hypoxia and overproduction of reactive oxygen species; this may aggravate the initial cellular damage caused by the actual mechanism of injury. Molecular hydrogen (H2) seems to be beneficial for treating ischemia-reperfusion…

Read the full abstract via DOI