Hydrogen Water Shows Mixed Results for Athletic Performance
- Authors
- Michal Botek, Jakub Krejčí, Andrew J. McKune, Barbora Sládečková
- Journal
- International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance
- Year
- 2020
- DOI
- 10.1123/ijspp.2019-0507
- Study Type
- Human
- Outcome
- Neutral
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Country
- Czech Republic
- Health Condition
- Exercise Fatigue
- Body System
- Cardiovascular
TL;DR
Drinking hydrogen-rich water before running uphill didn't clearly improve performance for all runners, but it might help slower runners go faster.
Key Finding
Hydrogen-rich water showed unclear overall effects on uphill running performance, but slower runners improved by approximately 20-40 seconds while faster runners showed no clear benefit.
Summary
Researchers tested whether hydrogen-rich water (water infused with hydrogen gas) could improve uphill running performance in 16 male runners of varying abilities. Participants drank either hydrogen-rich water or a placebo drink before two 4.2-kilometer uphill races. Overall, hydrogen-rich water did not clearly improve race time, heart rate, or how hard the runners felt they were working. However, the slower runners in the group showed some improvement with hydrogen-rich water, while faster runners showed no clear benefit.
Practical Takeaway
This small study suggests hydrogen-rich water may have different effects depending on a runner's fitness level, with possible benefits for less-trained athletes. However, the overall results were unclear, and the study was limited to 16 men doing one specific type of running, so more research is needed before drawing firm conclusions about whether it works for most people.
Abstract
Purpose: Hydrogen-rich water (HRW) has been shown to have an antifatigue effect. This study assessed up-hill running performance, as well as physiological and perceptual responses after supplementation with 1680 mL HRW between 24 h and 40 min before running, in athletes of heterogeneous running ability. Methods: Sixteen males (mean [SD] age 31.6 [8.6] y, VO2max 57.2 [8.9] mL·kg-1·min-1, body fat 13.4% [4.4%]) participated in this study. Using a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover design, participants consumed either HRW or placebo prior to performing two 4.2-km up-hill races separated by a week. Race time (RT), average race heart rate, and immediately postrace rating of perceived exertion were assessed. Results: After analysis of data for all runners, HRW effect was unclear (-10 to 7 s, 90% confidence interval) for RT, likely trivial for heart rate (-2 to 3 beats·min-1), and likely trivial for postrace rating of perceived exertion (-0.1 to 1.0). A possible negative correlation was found between RT differences and average RT (r = -.79 to -.15). HRW for the 4 slowest runners (RT = 1490 [91] s) likely improved the RT (-36 to -3 s), whereas for the 4 fastest runners (RT = 1069 [53] s) the performance effect of HRW was unclear (-10 to 26 s). Conclusions: HRW intake had an unclear antifatigue effect on performance in terms of mean group values. However, it appears that the magnitude of the antifatigue effect of HRW on performance depends on individual running ability.