Hydrogen Gas Improves Memory and Thinking in Older Women
- Authors
- Darinka Korovljev, Tatjana Trivic, Valdemar Stajer, Patrik Drid, Bunpei Sato, Sergej M. Ostojic
- Journal
- International Journal of Gerontology
- Year
- 2020
- DOI
- 10.6890/IJGE.202005_14(2).0013
- Study Type
- Human
- Outcome
- Positive
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Country
- Serbia
- Health Condition
- Mild Cognitive Impairment
- Body System
- Nervous System
TL;DR
Breathing in hydrogen gas for 15 minutes a day improved memory and thinking skills in older women after four weeks.
Key Finding
Women who inhaled hydrogen gas for 15 minutes daily over 4 weeks showed a 14.2% improvement in cognitive test scores, with some participants moving from mild cognitive impairment to normal cognition levels.
Summary
This small pilot study tested whether breathing hydrogen gas for 15 minutes daily for 4 weeks could improve thinking and memory in women over 65. The 13 women in the study showed meaningful improvements on two standard cognitive tests—their scores increased by about 14%, and some moved from mild cognitive impairment into the normal range. They also performed better on memory recall and recognition tasks.
Practical Takeaway
While this early-stage human study suggests hydrogen inhalation may support cognitive function in older adults, the results come from a very small pilot group (13 people) with no control group for comparison. Much larger and more rigorous studies would be needed before drawing firm conclusions about whether this approach could help with age-related cognitive decline.
Abstract
We analyzed the effects of 4-week H2 inhalation on cognitive performance in women aged 65 and above. The participants (n = 13) were community-dwelling older women (age 68.0 ± 3.0 years; weight 66.9 ± 10.3 kg; height 161.1 ± 5.8 cm) who volunteered to participate in this open-label pilot trial (ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02830854). The participants received H2 by inhalation for 15 min once per day for 4 weeks. The cognitive function was assessed using the Mini Mental State Exam (MMSE) and Alzheimer disease assessment scale cognitive subscale (ADAS-Cog) at baseline and at follow up. H2 intervention significantly increased total MMSE scores (for 14.2% on average; p < 0.01), thereby improving cognitive function from mild dementia at baseline (a score of 25.6 out of 30) to normal cognition at follow up (above a cut score of 27). In addition, ADAS-Cog scores were significantly improved by H2 inhalation, with better performance for word recall test (p < 0.01), and improved word recognition (p = 0.01) at post-administration, respectively. This pilot trial seems to corroborate previous animal studies, suggesting that gaseous H2 might be considered as a beneficial agent for age-related cognitive health.