(Thanks to Alex Tranava, of HRW, whose products we also supply)
Hydrogen Water is just water that has had H2 (hydrogen gas) dissolved into it.
The end product yields a gas-dissolved solution, similar to carbonation which adds CO2 (carbon dioxide) to water to make sparkling water. The difference? Hydrogen gas is added instead of carbon dioxide.
What is Hydrogen Gas?
Hydrogen gas is simply two hydrogen atoms bound together to form molecular hydrogen or H2. It is a colourless, odorless neutral gas that is non-polar and largely non-reactive.
Wait… Isn`t Hydrogen Gas EXPLOSIVE? Like the Hindenburg?
Molecular hydrogen is only explosive above 4.6% of the atmospheric pressure. Hydrogen tablets do not produce enough gas to exceed this threshold in any reasonable measurement. Further, when dissolved in water, it is neither explosive not flammable. There is no risk from the hydrogen tablets or from hydrogen water.
Isn`t ALL Water Hydrogen Water?
While water does contain two parts hydrogen and one-part oxygen, regular water (H2O) is not the same as hydrogen water. In H2O, the molecules are bound together, whereas hydrogen water is a “solution”, where the H2 gas is dissolved into the H2O.
…But, Isn`t Water Still Two Parts Hydrogen? So, Can`t I Just Drink More Water?
If the goal is to obtain therapeutic hydrogen gas, then drinking more water will not accomplish this goal, no matter how much you drink. Changing a compound, changes its properties. The components of a compound do not necessarily possess the same characteristics as the compound. Likewise, a compound doesn`t necessarily have similar characteristics as its components.
A good example is sodium chloride (NaCl). Sodium in its elemental form is highly explosive, and very dangerous. By dropping sodium metal into water, it will violently explode, potentially shattering the container and igniting in flames fueled by an exothermic reaction and the release of hydrogen gas. Chlorine is a toxic gas. Bound together as NaCl, they become table salt, which is water soluble (and doesn`t explode or make H2O) and delivers ionic elemental sodium, which we need in certain quantities to maintain biological function. Of course, too much sodium comes with negative health consequences.
As for hydrogen water, when H2 is bound to oxygen we cannot obtain its therapeutic benefit no more than we can breathe the oxygen bound to water. Thus, we need to dissolve extra hydrogen gas into regular water to obtain hydrogen water.
WHAT HYDROGEN WATER IS NOT
Hydrogen Water is NOT Hydrogen Peroxide
Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is a string oxidizing agent. The only similarity between the two is that they both have a hydrogen molecule in the compound. As discussed in the previous section, even compounds with similar make ups can have dramatically different behaviours.
Hydrogen Water is NOT H3O or H4O
Adding hydrogen gas to water does not change the water to H3O or H4O. It simply adds gas to water that dissolves into solution (or maintains itself in a quasi-dissolved state, such as in our tablets). Hydrogen water is still H2O, just with extra hydrogen gas added.
Hydrogen Water is NOT Alkaline Water
While some water ionizers market themselves as both alkaline and hydrogen water makers, adding hydrogen gas to water does not change its pH. We have a full article coming out on the misconceptions between alkaline water and hydrogen water.
Hydrogen gas, as a neutral molecule, does not increase the pH of a solution. This is a sticky point for many, as pH is a measurement of hydrogen ions. To understand the differrences between the several forms of hydrogen, the MHI has an article here title “Dummies Guide to Hydrogen”.
Molecular hydrogen tablets are the most promising preventative aging supplement on the market. With over 1500 publications on potential hydrogen water benefits in 170 disease models* throughout every organ, H2 tablets have been shown to indirectly mitigate the damages of the Big 3—those nasty three issues that lead to virtually all diseases and are the driving forces in why we get older and die: Imbalances of our oxidative stress, inflammation, and increased insulin resistance.
PROTECT YOUR BODY
RECOVER RAPIDLY
INCREASE OVERALL ATHLETIC PERFORMANCE
H2 enhances the healing mechanisms of every single joint, muscle, tendon, and ligament in your body to help protect against overuse-related injuries, such as stress fractures, sprains, strains and tears.
Keeping Your Body in Tune with Molecular Hydrogen Tablets
Increasingly, molecular hydrogen supplementation is proving to be the most powerful tool to positively impact our gene expression.
What exactly does this mean? You have heard the term “it’s in your genes.” Genes are important, but what’s more critical for health is how your genes are expressed.
It’s like your body is an old car with discontinued parts. Once those parts wear out, replacements are hard to find, and maintenance becomes critical.
Maybe while driving you notice your timing is off. You pop the hood and find a bolt necessary to keep the timing chain in place stripped and loose. With every bump in the road, your timing gets knocked out a little bit because of that old, stripped bolt. Pretty soon your gas mileage is poor, and your horsepower reduced.
Your engine rattles and can’t keep consistent RPM. This starts loosening and breaking all the other bolts, stressing the hoses, and creating more strain on the connecting parts of your vehicle.
Like any wise owner, you pop your hood before driving to adjust things so your engine sounds right. You do this because your car is important to you, timing is critical, and you can`t buy replacement parts!
High dose molecular hydrogen is similar to popping the hood and adjusting the timing until you hear the engine purring just right. It doesn’t fix the worn bolt, nor does it repair the damage already done, but it improves performance for a while before the timing slides back out of place from the next bump.
For some cars, any bump will throw the timing off, so adjustments need to be made every time it’s driven. In the same way, for many people, daily H2 helps keep things running smoothly.
Regulating redox, which is our body’s natural balance between beneficial oxidative species and our own production of antioxidants, and the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines back into balance by supplementation with H2 is like adjusting your car’s timing to enhance horsepower and gas mileage. It may not fix what is already broken, but it goes a long way to improving the remaining performance.
How a Daily Molecular Hydrogen Supplement Can Combat Oxidative Stress
Most traditional antioxidants are ineffective and can be harmful. They indiscriminately react with all oxidative types, even the good guys like nitric oxide. What’s worse, is they can lead to producing less of our own antioxidants, which further throws off oxidative balance.
A daily Molecular Hydrogen regimen promotes antioxidant/oxidative balance via activation of the Nrf2 pathway. It ONLY works when this system is not in harmony, making it the most reliable way to tackle oxidative stress.
Using H2 Tablets to Balance Your Body’s Inflammation
Like Oxidative Stress Inflammation is necessary for our bodies. Too much of it or too little and our bodies develop all sorts of issues. Molecular Hydrogen is not an actual anti-inflammatory, but instead as a gene signaling gas it will up or down regulate the pro inflammatory cytokines- these tiny proteins in our body that start the signaling to increase inflammation.
Again, H2 only does this when there is an imbalance in our bodies, meaning that there are no dangerous drug-like effects of stopping necessary inflammation found in powerful prescription non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs) and steroidal anti-inflammatories.
Comparing Hydrogen Water to NSAIDs
Consider this analogy: Imagine a gas-lit controlled fire designed to warm a walkway, and keep ice and snow melted away. When the appropriate amount of gas is channeled to the flame, the fire works perfectly for its intended purpose of heating and clearing the path.
Then imagine if this gas-fueled flame was magnified by a factor of 5 or 10 (when our bodies have excess inflammation). The fire now engulfs the walkway, causing it to be unusable and dangerous.
Typical NSAIDs will abate the flames, similar to firemen rushing to the scene with fire hoses and flame retardants, but will not stop the flow of new gas for the fire—or new inflammation. They will also cause potentially dangerous side effects such as kidney damage and ulcers, as the flame retardants and fire hoses would cause a slippery pathway.
Some of the more powerful prescription-only COX inhibitors (NSAIDs) and corticosteroids will completely shut down inflammation, akin to turning off the gas flow. A lack of inflammation in our body can be as hazardous as an excess, just as the accumulation of ice on the walkway could cause dangers.
