The effects of drinking hydrogen-rich water for six weeks on exercise-related biomarkers in exercise-naïve men and women over 50 years following resistance training program: a randomized controlled pilot trial

The primary objective of this pilot study was to assess the impact of consuming hydrogen-rich water (HRW) for a duration of six weeks on exercise-related biomarkers in previously untrained men and women aged over 50 years, subsequent to a resistance training program. Twenty-seven apparently healthy middle-aged adults (age 57.6 ± 6.7 years; 18 females) voluntarily provided written consent to participate in this randomized, placebo-controlled experimental trial. All participants were allocated in a double-blind parallel-group design to receive either HRW (12 mg of dihydrogen per serving) or control water (<0.1 ppm of dihydrogen) administered two times per day during a 6-week intervention interval. Muscle performance indices showed a significant improvement following both HRW and control water interventions compared to the baseline values (<i>p</i> ≤ 0.05). HRW led to a significant increase in serum free testosterone and cortisol levels, along with reductions in total cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol levels at the follow-up (<i>p</i> ≤ 0.05). Moreover, HRW significantly outperformed the control water in reducing biomarkers of acute muscular damage caused by resistance exercise (<i>p</i> ≤ 0.05) and tended to outcompete placebo in improving sleep quality (<i>p</i> = 0.119). HRW could be advanced as a risk-free and effective beverage for promoting training-specific adaptations in exercise-naïve men and women over 50 years of age.