Hydrogen Therapy Changes Brain Chemistry to Reduce Appetite in Overweight Adults
- Authors
- Darinka Korovljev, Jelena Ostojic, Nikola Todorovic, Sergej M. Ostojic
- Journal
- Archives of Medical Science
- Year
- 2023
- DOI
- 10.5114/aoms/162938
- Study Type
- Human
- Outcome
- Positive
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Country
- Serbia
- Health Condition
- Overweight
- Body System
- Nervous System
TL;DR
Drinking molecular hydrogen for 12 weeks may reduce hunger and help with weight loss by changing brain chemicals related to appetite in overweight adults.
Key Finding
Twelve weeks of molecular hydrogen intake significantly reduced brain levels of glutamate and GABA in overweight adults, changes that may relate to appetite suppression.
Summary
Researchers gave 5 overweight adults molecular hydrogen (a gas dissolved in water) for 12 weeks and used brain imaging to measure levels of three chemical messengers involved in hunger and appetite control. They found that hydrogen intake decreased levels of glutamate and GABA (neurotransmitters that affect appetite) in specific brain regions, compared to a similar group of 4 overweight people who did not receive hydrogen. The researchers suggest this change might help suppress hunger and support weight loss, but they emphasize that much larger studies are needed to confirm this effect.
Practical Takeaway
This is a very small pilot study (only 5 people) that suggests hydrogen water may influence brain chemistry related to appetite control. However, the tiny sample size and lack of direct measurements of actual hunger or weight loss mean these results are preliminary. Much larger, well-designed studies would be needed before drawing any conclusions about whether hydrogen water could help with weight management.
Abstract
Introduction: We evaluated whether 12-week intake of molecular hydrogen (H2) in 5 overweight adults (3 women; age: 50.2 ±11.9 years, body mass index: 29.4 ±2.1 kg/m2) affects brain levels of the glutamate-glutamine-GABA cycle, critical amino acid neurotransmitters in the mechanism of neuronal activation during appetite regulation. Methods: A 1.5-T single-voxel proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy was used to assess the tissue concentrations of relevant metabolites. Results: The mean glutamate and glutamate-plus-glutamine levels at the posterior cingulate gyrus decreased significantly during the study; this was accompanied by a significant drop in GABA levels at left prefrontal white matter, and glutathione levels at anterior cingulate gyrus. No changes in the brain metabolites were found in the comparable group of overweight individuals (n = 4, 2 women; age: 41.0 ±13.9, BMI 26.8 ±1.3 kg/m2) followed-up in the past without this treatment. Conclusions: We showed a possible hydrogen-driven upregulation of neurotransmitters involved in appetite stimulation leading to hunger suppression and weight loss. Further studies analyzing appetite-controlling metabolic pathways affected by H2 would require monitoring of additional biomarkers of satiation and satiety during different feeding regimens.