Hydrogen Water Prevents Gut Damage and Improves Survival in Sepsis
- Authors
- Mitsunori Ikeda, Kentaro Shimizu, Hiroshi Ogura, Takashi Kurakawa, Eiji Umemoto, Daisuke Motooka, Shota Nakamura, Naotsugu Ichimaru, Kiyoshi Takeda, Shiro Takahara, Shin-ichi Hirano, Takeshi Shimazu
- Journal
- Shock
- Year
- 2018
- DOI
- 10.1097/SHK.0000000000001098
- Study Type
- Mouse
- Outcome
- Positive
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Country
- Japan
- Health Condition
- Sepsis
- Body System
- Gastrointestinal
TL;DR
Drinking hydrogen-rich water improved survival and reduced harmful bacteria spread in mice with a severe infection that can lead to organ failure.
Key Finding
Mice treated with hydrogen-rich saline had a 69% survival rate compared to 31% in untreated controls, along with significantly reduced bacterial translocation (bacteria leaking from the intestines into the bloodstream).
Summary
Researchers tested whether hydrogen-rich saline (salt water containing dissolved hydrogen) could help mice survive sepsis, a life-threatening condition caused by severe infection. In mice with sepsis, hydrogen-rich saline improved survival rates, reduced harmful bacteria entering the bloodstream, strengthened the intestinal barrier, and lowered inflammatory markers and oxidative stress (cellular damage from unstable molecules).
Practical Takeaway
While these results are promising, this is an animal study in mice with artificially induced sepsis—not human research. The findings suggest hydrogen water may warrant further investigation for sepsis management, but much more research, including human trials, would be needed before any therapeutic claims could be made.
Abstract
ABSTRACT Bacterial translocation is a major cause of multiple organ dysfunction syndrome in critical illness, and its management is an important therapeutic strategy. In this study, we focused on the key factors responsible for bacterial translocation including the intestinal microbiome and investigated the impact of molecular hydrogen therapy as a countermeasure against bacterial translocation in a murine model of sepsis. The experimental protocols were divided into the sham, saline treatment (control), and hydrogen treatment (H2) groups. In the H2 group, 15 mL/kg of hydrogen-rich saline (7 ppm) was gavaged daily for 7 days following cecal ligation and puncture (CLP). In the control group, normal saline was gavaged in the same way. In the results, the 7-day survival rate was significantly improved in the H2 group versus the control group (69% vs. 31%, P < 0.05). The incidence of bacterial translocation at 24 h after CLP as assessed by cultivation of mesenteric lymph nodes and blood was significantly decreased in the H2 group versus the control group. Administration of hydrogen-rich saline also prevented the expansion of facultative anaerobic Enterobacteriaceae and ameliorated intestinal hyperpermeability at 24 h after CLP. Intestinal tissue levels of inflammatory mediators such as inducible nitric oxide synthases, tumor necrosis factor α, interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, and oxidative stress marker malondialdehyde at 6 h after CLP were down-regulated in the H2 group. These results suggest luminal administration of hydrogen-rich saline, which prevents intestinal dysbiosis, hyperpermeability, and bacterial translocation, could potentially be a new therapeutic strategy in critical illness.