Hydrogen Water Improves Memory in Female Alzheimer's Mice
Hydrogen-rich water improves cognitive impairment gender-dependently in APP/PS1 mice without affecting Aβ clearance
Research hubs: Brain & Nervous System · Endocrine System
This research was done in animals. Results in animals often don't carry over to people.
- Evidence type
- Animal study (mouse)
- Authors
- Chen Hou, Yunhua Peng, Chuan Qin, Fan Fan, Jiankang Liu, Jiangang Long
- Journal
- Free Radical Research
- Year
- 2018
- PMID
- 29683360
- Study Type
- Mouse
- Delivery
- Water (Dissolved)
- Dose
- hydrogen-rich water for 3 months
- Duration
- 3 months
- Outcome
- Positive
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Cited by
- 41 (OpenAlex, as of November 2026)
- Country
- China
TL;DR
Drinking hydrogen-rich water improved memory and brain health in female mice with Alzheimer's disease, but not in males, suggesting a new gender-specific treatment approach.
Key Finding
Hydrogen-rich water significantly improved cognitive function in female Alzheimer's disease mice by reducing brain inflammation and oxidative stress through estrogen-related pathways, but showed no similar benefit in male mice.
Summary
Researchers gave hydrogen-rich water to genetically modified mice that develop Alzheimer's disease symptoms to see if it could help their brain function and health. They found that female mice showed significant improvements in memory and thinking abilities after three months of drinking hydrogen-rich water, and the treatment reduced harmful inflammation and oxidative stress (cellular damage from unstable molecules) in their brains. Interestingly, male mice did not show the same benefits, suggesting that the effect may be related to female hormones and specific brain signaling pathways.
Practical Takeaway
This early-stage animal study suggests hydrogen water may have sex-specific effects on brain health in Alzheimer's disease, with potential benefits in females through hormone-related mechanisms. However, this is a mouse study only and does not directly prove hydrogen water would help human Alzheimer's patients—human clinical trials would be needed to determine if these findings apply to people.
Abstract (excerpt)
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterised as a provoked inflammatory response and oxidative stress along with amyloid β peptide (Aβ) deposition and neurofibrillary tangles in the brain, and effective treatment is greatly needed. Molecular hydrogen, which has been proposed to be an antioxidant that…