Hydrogen Water Protects Skin Cells from UV Damage in Lab Study
- Authors
- Yasukazu Saitoh, Yuuki Yamaguchi, Yuhei Okada
- Journal
- Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry
- Year
- 2021
- DOI
- 10.1007/s11010-021-04189-z
- Study Type
- Cell Culture
- Outcome
- Positive
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Country
- Japan
- Health Condition
- UV-induced skin damage
- Body System
- Integumentary
TL;DR
Molecular hydrogen (H2) can protect skin cells from damage caused by different types of stress related to ultraviolet (UV) light exposure.
Key Finding
Dissolved hydrogen gas reduced damage to human skin cells exposed to three types of UV-derived oxidative stress and suppressed the buildup of harmful molecules inside cells.
Summary
Researchers tested whether dissolved hydrogen gas could protect human skin cells from three types of damage caused by UV radiation and oxidative stress (a harmful chemical process). In laboratory dishes, they exposed skin cells to damaging chemicals and found that hydrogen gas reduced cell injury and lowered levels of harmful molecules inside the cells. This suggests hydrogen might help protect skin from UV-related damage.
Practical Takeaway
This is early laboratory research in isolated skin cells, not human skin or people. While the results are promising, they do not yet demonstrate that hydrogen water would protect human skin from UV damage. Much more research—including human studies—would be needed before drawing conclusions about real-world benefits for skin health.
Abstract
Molecular hydrogen (H2) is recognized as a gaseous antioxidant, and it is expected to ameliorate various disorders related to oxidative stress and inflammation. However, there are still many unclear points regarding its effectiveness in the skin. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the protective effect of H2 against ultraviolet (UV) irradiation-related stress injury in human epidermal HaCaT cells. We investigated the effects of H2 against three types of UV-derived oxidative stress using human skin keratinocytes: hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-induced oxidative stress, tert-butyl hydroperoxide (t-BuOOH)-induced lipid peroxidation stress, and glyoxal-induced carbonyl stress. Our results showed that H2 exerted cytoprotective effects against stress induced by H2O2, t-BuOOH, and glyoxal. Furthermore, our results also revealed that H2 suppressed H2O2-induced increases in intracellular peroxide and H2O2 levels, and suppressed the progression of lipid peroxidation. Taken together, our results demonstrate that H2 can exert protective effects against oxidative stress-, lipid peroxidation-, and carbonyl stress-induced cellular injuries in human keratinocytes, partly mediated via suppression of intracellular oxidative stress and peroxide generation. Therefore, H2 is expected to be utilized as an effective and attractive component in cosmetic formulations in the future.