Hydrogen Water Protects Kidneys from Damage in Animal Study
Molecular Hydrogen Suppresses Renal Injury in Chronic Kidney Disease Rats
This research was done in animals. Results in animals often don't carry over to people.
- Evidence type
- Animal study (rat)
- Authors
- Bo Chen, Dong Song, Juan Ma, Wanjun Zhu
- Journal
- Journal of Bioprocessing & Biotechniques
- Year
- 2018
- Study Type
- Rat
- Participants
- 20
- Delivery
- Water, Commercial (Brand Unknown)
- Dose
- Hydrogen-dissolved water consumption over 4-week period
- Duration
- 4 weeks
- Outcome
- Positive
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Cited by
- 2 (OpenAlex, as of November 2026)
- Country
- China
TL;DR
Drinking hydrogen-enriched water helped reduce kidney damage in rats subjected to stress and injury.
Key Finding
Hydrogen-rich water reduced inflammatory markers and glomerular damage in rats with chronic kidney disease exposed to combined oxidative stress and reduced blood flow, though it did not affect blood pressure or urinary parameters.
Summary
Researchers gave rats with kidney disease either hydrogen-rich water or regular tap water for four weeks, then exposed them to conditions that stress the kidneys (high salt diet, a harmful chemical, and reduced blood flow). Hydrogen-rich water reduced some markers of kidney damage and inflammation compared to regular water, though it didn't affect blood pressure or urine output.
Practical Takeaway
This early animal study suggests hydrogen water may help protect kidney tissue under certain stress conditions, but the findings are limited to rats and don't yet translate to human health recommendations. More research in humans would be needed to determine if these protective effects occur in people with kidney disease.
Abstract (excerpt)
Background: Cathode side commercial hydrogen dissolved water (HW) exhibits low dissolved oxygen, high dissolved hydrogen and significant negative redox potential. Therapeutic applications of HW have recently been reported. Thus, the present study aimed to examine effects of HW consumption on renal…