This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover study found that acute pre-exercise hydrogen rich water ingestion (1260 ml) provided no ergogenic benefit for running performance at maximal aerobic speed in trained track and field runners. Despite theoretical antioxidant properties, HRW had no significant effects on time to exhaustion, blood lactate concentration, heart rate, or oxygen uptake compared to placebo. These findings suggest that hydrogen rich water supplementation is ineffective as a performance-enhancing intervention in trained endurance athletes.
Plain-Language Summary
Researchers tested whether drinking hydrogen-rich water before exercise could help trained runners run longer at high intensity. Twenty-four competitive young runners drank either hydrogen-rich water or a placebo (fake) drink about 2 hours before running to exhaustion. The study found no difference between the two groups in how long runners lasted, their heart rate, oxygen use, or blood lactate levels (a marker of exercise intensity).
Abstract
Purpose: This study investigated the effects of acute, pre-exercise, hydrogen rich water (HRW) ingestion on running time to exhaustion at maximal aerobic speed in trained track and field runners. Methods: Twenty-four, male runners aged 17.5 ± 1.8 years, with body mass index = 21.0 ± 1.3 kg⋅m-2, and maximal oxygen uptake = 55.0 ± 4.6 ml⋅kg-1⋅min-1 (mean ± standard deviation) participated in this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover study. All runners ingested 1260 ml of HRW which was divided into four doses and taken at 120 min (420 ml), 60 min (420 ml), 30 min (210 ml), and 10 min (210 ml) prior to exercise. The running protocol consisted of three phases: warm-up performed at 10 km⋅h-1 for 3 min, followed by a transition phase performed at an individually determined speed (10 km⋅h-1 + maximal aerobic speed)/2 for 1 min, and finally the third phase performed at individual maximal aerobic speed until exhaustion. Time to exhaustion, cardiorespiratory variables, and post-exercise blood lactate concentration were measured. Results: When running to exhaustion at maximal aerobic speed, compared with placebo, HRW had no significant effects on the following variables: time to exhaustion (217 ± 49 and 227 ± 53 s, p = 0.20), post-exercise blood lactate concentration (9.9 ± 2.2 and 10.1 ± 2.0 mmol⋅L-1, p = 0.42), maximal heart rate (186 ± 9 and 186 ± 9 beats⋅min-1, p = 0.80), and oxygen uptake (53.1 ± 4.5 and 52.2 ± 4.7 ml⋅kg-1⋅min-1, p = 0.33). No variable assessed as a candidate moderator was significantly correlated with time to exhaustion (Spearman's correlation coefficients ranged from -0.28 to 0.30, all p ≥ 0.16). Conclusions: Pre-exercise administration of 1260 ml of HRW showed no ergogenic effect on running performance to exhaustion at maximal aerobic speed in trained track and field runners.
