Hydrogen Water Improves Vision in Retinitis Pigmentosa Patients
The clinical research on the effect of hydrogen-rich water on primary retinitis pigmentosa
Research hubs: Eyes & Vision System
- Evidence type
- Uncontrolled trial (single-arm or pilot) · Human study
- Authors
- Xiaohong Chen, Yanjian Chen, Xingchui Lin, Qian Ye, Sheng Zhang, Yunpeng Wang, Meizhu Chen, Weiming Yan
- Journal
- Heliyon
- Year
- 2023
- PMID
- 37860576
- Study Type
- Human
- Participants
- 13
- Delivery
- Water (Dissolved)
- Dose
- 400-500 ml hydrogen-rich water twice a day for four consecutive weeks
- H₂ concentration
- 1.6 mg/L
- Duration
- 4 weeks
- Funding
- Key Scientific Research Project of the 900th Hospital of Joint Logistic Support Force, PLA (Project number: 2022ZD04); Pilot projects of Fujian Province (Grant numbers: 2020Y0076 and 2020J05282); Postdoctoral Science Foundation of the Fuzhou General Hospital of the Nanjing Military Area Command (Grant number: 48678); National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant number: 81870255)
- Conflicts of interest
- None declared
- Outcome
- Positive
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Cited by
- 0 (OpenAlex, as of November 2026)
- Country
- China
TL;DR
Drinking hydrogen-rich water for a month slightly improved the vision of patients with retinitis pigmentosa, a degenerative eye disease, although it did not change the thickness of the retina or choroid.
Key Finding
After four weeks of drinking hydrogen-rich water, patients with retinitis pigmentosa showed statistically significant improvements in visual acuity and in electrical activity of the retina (measured by electroretinogram), though the thickness of retinal structures did not change.
Summary
Researchers gave 13 patients with retinitis pigmentosa (a progressive eye disease that causes vision loss) hydrogen-rich water to drink twice daily for four weeks. They measured changes in vision and electrical activity in the eye. The study found that drinking hydrogen-rich water led to modest improvements in visual acuity (sharpness of vision) and in electrical signals from the retina (the light-sensing tissue at the back of the eye), but did not change the thickness of the retina or the layer beneath it.
Practical Takeaway
This small human study suggests hydrogen-rich water may provide modest functional benefits for retinitis pigmentosa patients, possibly through antioxidant effects. However, the study was short-term (four weeks) with only 13 patients, so larger and longer studies would be needed to confirm whether these improvements persist and whether they translate to meaningful real-world benefits for vision.
Abstract (excerpt)
Objective: To investigate the feasibility and effectiveness of hydrogen in the treatment of retinitis pigmentosa (RP) patients through the drinking of hydrogen-rich water (HRW). Methods: RP patients clinically diagnosed in our hospital were selected and given HRW for drinking at 400-500 ml twice…