Hydrogen Gas Shows Promise as New Medical Treatment
- Authors
- Dongyue Du, Lin Zhao, Meihua Shen, Mami Noda, Shucun Qin, Jiangang Long, Xuejun Sun, Jiankang Liu
- Journal
- Traditional Medicine and Open Medicine
- Year
- 2021
- DOI
- 10.1142/S2575900020300052
- Study Type
- clinical
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Country
- China
- Health Condition
- Multiple diseases (unspecified)
- Body System
- Multiple systems
TL;DR
Scientists are discovering that hydrogen gas might help treat and prevent diseases because it's safe, easy to get, and fights harmful stuff in your body—but we need more real-world testing to prove it actually works and understand exactly how it does.
Key Finding
Molecular hydrogen shows promise as a therapeutic agent with antioxidant properties, but the field currently lacks definitive clinical evidence and a comprehensive understanding of its molecular mechanisms.
Summary
This is a review article that examines molecular hydrogen (H₂), a tiny gas molecule, as a potential medical treatment. The authors surveyed existing research showing that hydrogen may help prevent and treat various diseases by reducing harmful molecules called oxidants in the body. They note that hydrogen is non-toxic and easy to obtain, but point out that the field still lacks strong clinical evidence in humans and a clear understanding of exactly how hydrogen works at the molecular level.
Practical Takeaway
While this review suggests hydrogen has potential in medicine, it is not a research study with new findings—it is a summary of existing literature. The authors themselves acknowledge that solid clinical evidence in humans is still missing. Anyone interested in hydrogen water should be aware that most supporting research remains preliminary, and more rigorous human trials are needed before definitive health claims can be made.
Abstract
Gas medicine, including O 2 , NO, H 2 S, CO, CH 4 , has played important roles in prevention and treatment of diseases for a long time. Molecular hydrogen (H 2 ), the smallest diatomic molecule in nature, has become a rising star in gas medicine in the past decades. Many studies have shown that H 2 has preventive and therapeutic effects on various diseases through its selective antioxidant activity. H 2 , as a non-toxic gas for the human body and convenience to obtain, has provided a great possibility to be used widely. Currently, the main difficulties in hydrogen medicine are lack of definitive clinical evidence and the molecular basis of hydrogen effects. In this paper, the authors have conducted a comprehensive review and analysis of these issues, and also proposed the possibility of developing Hydrogen Biology and Hydrogen Medicine as new disciplines of biology and medicine.