Hydrogen Water Doesn't Boost Exercise Performance in Heat
Effects of electrolyzed hydrogen water ingestion during endurance exercise in a heated environment on body fluid balance and exercise performance
Research hubs: Cardiovascular System
- Evidence type
- Controlled trial (non-randomized) · Human study
- Authors
- Hiroto Ito, Shigeru Kabayma, Kazushige Goto
- Journal
- Temperature
- Year
- 2020
- PMID
- 33117861
- Study Type
- Human
- Participants
- 12
- Delivery
- Water (Electrolysis)
- Dose
- Electrolyzed hydrogen water ingested during 60 min endurance exercise at 65% VO2max
- Duration
- 1 day or less
- Conflicts of interest
- Author Kabayama S is affiliated to NIHON TRIM CO., LTD, which sells a commercial generator of EHW. He contributed to conducting the experiment (preparing the generator, checking pH of generated water) but was not involved in manuscript writing, discussion or drawing conclusion.
- Outcome
- Neutral
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Country
- Japan
TL;DR
Drinking electrolyzed hydrogen water (EHW) during exercise in the heat may lower energy use but doesn't improve exercise performance or affect how the body maintains its fluid levels.
Key Finding
Electrolyzed hydrogen water reduced energy expenditure by about 0.5 kcal/min during endurance exercise in heat compared to regular water, but did not improve exercise performance or time to exhaustion.
Summary
Researchers had 12 trained cyclists drink either regular purified water or electrolyzed hydrogen water (water containing extra hydrogen molecules made through an electrical process) while exercising for 60 minutes in heat, then tested how long they could continue exercising at increasing intensity. The hydrogen water group used slightly less energy during exercise, but there were no differences between groups in how long they could exercise, how much fluid they lost, or their body temperature.
Practical Takeaway
This small study in trained athletes suggests hydrogen water may have minor effects on how the body uses energy during exercise, but it did not enhance performance or provide other physical benefits. The practical significance of using slightly less energy without improved endurance is unclear, and results from this single 12-person study would need to be confirmed in larger trials before drawing conclusions for general use.
Abstract (excerpt)
Electrolyzed hydrogen water (EHW) is generated at a cathode. It contains many hydrogen molecules with high alkaline properties. The physiological effects of ingesting EHW during endurance exercise are unclear. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of ingesting EHW during endurance…