Hydrogen Gas May Protect Against Harmful Radiation Effects
- Authors
- Qiongge Hu, Yunxiang Zhou, Shijie Wu, Wei Wu, Yongchuan Deng, Anwen Shao
- Journal
- Biomedicine and Pharmacology
- Year
- 2020
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.biopha.2020.110589
- Study Type
- clinical
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Country
- China
- Health Condition
- Radiation Exposure
- Body System
- Cellular
TL;DR
Hydrogen gas might be able to protect your body from radiation damage by stopping harmful chemicals called free radicals before they can hurt your cells, which could be really useful for people getting radiation treatment or exposed to radiation. Scientists think this is worth studying more because early tests show it actually works.
Key Finding
Hydrogen's selective antioxidant properties allow it to neutralize hydroxyl radicals, the primary source of ionizing radiation damage to cells, suggesting potential as a radioprotective agent.
Summary
This review article examines whether molecular hydrogen (H2) could protect against damage from ionizing radiation (like X-rays or radiation therapy). Radiation damages cells mainly by creating harmful molecules called hydroxyl radicals. Because hydrogen has antioxidant properties (meaning it can neutralize these harmful molecules), researchers believe it may help prevent or reduce radiation damage. The authors reviewed existing laboratory and animal studies and concluded that hydrogen shows promise as a protective agent, though more research is needed.
Practical Takeaway
While this review identifies hydrogen as a promising candidate for radiation protection based on laboratory and animal studies, it is a summary of existing research rather than new evidence. No human clinical trials are described, so it remains unclear whether hydrogen water would provide meaningful protection in real-world radiation exposure scenarios. Anyone considering hydrogen for radiation protection should consult their healthcare provider, as clinical evidence in humans is not yet available.
Abstract
In recent years, many studies have shown that hydrogen has therapeutic and preventive effects on various diseases. Its selective antioxidant properties were well noticed. Most of the ionizing radiation-induced damage is caused by hydroxyl radicals (OH) from radiolysis of H2O. Since hydrogen can mitigate such damage through multiple mechanisms, it presents noteworthy potential as a novel radio-protective agent. This review analyses possible mechanisms for hydrogen's radioprotective properties and effective delivery methods. We also look into details of vitro and vivo studies for hydrogen's radioprotective effects, and clinical practices. We conclude that hydrogen has good potential in radio-protection, with evidence that warrants greater research efforts in this field.