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 (excerpt)
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…