A New Chapter in Hydrogen Medicine

# A New Chapter in Hydrogen Medicine: Academician Zhong Nanshan's Five Endorsements! How Hydrogen-Oxygen Therapy is Reshaping the Clinical Landscape

A New Chapter in Hydrogen Medicine
In the universe, hydrogen—the substance with the smallest molecular weight—is benefiting human health in a surprising way. In recent years, research into the medical applications of this simple gas has sprung up like mushrooms, moving from laboratories to clinical practice, and from theoretical research to disease treatment, demonstrating astonishing potential.

PART 01
// The Medical "Miracle" of the Smallest Molecule //
As the substance with the smallest molecular weight in the universe, hydrogen has a strong ability to penetrate tissues, easily crossing cell membranes, mitochondrial membranes, and nuclear membranes to reach the interior of cells and exert biological effects. Previous cellular, animal, and clinical trials have shown that hydrogen has therapeutic effects on cardiovascular diseases, respiratory diseases, nervous system diseases, metabolic diseases, and tumors. The therapeutic mechanism of hydrogen is mainly based on its anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anti-apoptotic properties. It can selectively neutralize malignant free radicals, reduce oxidative stress damage, regulate the release of inflammatory factors, and inhibit the process of cell apoptosis.

Image Reference：Pan S, Wang B, Yu M, Zhang J, Fan B, Nie C, Zou R, Yang X, Zhang Z, Hong X, Yang W. Hydrogen alleviates myocardial infarction by impeding apoptosis via ROS-mediated mitochondrial endogenous pathway. Free Radic Res. 2025 Mar;59(3):226-238. doi: 10.1080/10715762.2025.2474014. Epub 2025 Mar 7. PMID: 40040521.

Image Reference：Li H, Qi X, Xu H, Zhou R, Liu X, Li L, Hu C, Dai C. Hydrogen inhalation ameliorates lung inflammation in mice with asthma. Eur J Med Res. 2025 Oct 27;30(1):1024. doi: 10.1186/s40001-025-03296-7. PMID: 41146240; PMCID: PMC12560338.

PART 02

// Academician Zhong Nanshan's Five "Endorsements" //

As a leading figure in the field of respiratory diseases in China, Academician Zhong Nanshan's support for hydrogen medicine has promoted the development of this field in the country.

First Endorsement: Academician Zhong Nanshan led a multi-center clinical study confirming the significant efficacy of hydrogen-oxygen therapy for patients with acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). This study was published in the journal Respiratory Research, marking a stage where hydrogen medicine moves towards high-level clinical research.

Image Reference 2 (Screenshot Source: China News Network)

Second Endorsement: Academician Zhong Nanshan's team found that for patients with acute exacerbation of COPD, hydrogen-oxygen therapy is superior to traditional oxygen therapy, with good safety and tolerability. This suggests that inhaling a hydrogen/oxygen mixture could serve as an alternative emergency treatment for acute exacerbation of COPD.

Third Endorsement: Academician Zhong Nanshan emphasized that hydrogen-oxygen therapy might be an alternative to long-term home oxygen therapy in the future. This perspective opens the door for home medical applications of hydrogen.

Fourth Endorsement: At the 7th National Hydrogen Biomedicine Conference, Academician Zhong Nanshan clearly stated that hydrogen biomedicine research must use equipment approved by the National Medical Products Administration; industrial hydrogen cannot be used for humans or animals.

Image Reference 3 (Screenshot Source: Qilu Evening News)

Fifth Endorsement: Academician Zhong Nanshan specifically pointed out, "Industrial hydrogen is corrosive and cannot be casually used on humans or tested on animals." This safety warning provides direction for the standardized development of hydrogen medicine.

PART 03

// Strong Evidence from Clinical Studies //

Respiratory Diseases

Research by Academician Zhong Nanshan's team shows that inhaling a hydrogen/oxygen mixture can significantly improve symptoms of acute COPD exacerbation (including dyspnea, cough, and sputum production). In the trial, participants were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to the experimental group (adjuvant treatment with a hydrogen-oxygen nebulizer) and the control group (adjuvant treatment with a medical oxygen concentrator). Both groups inhaled for 6-8 hours daily for a treatment period of 7 days.

Cardiovascular Diseases

A study published in 2025 showed that hydrogen inhalation reduces damage from myocardial infarction. By downregulating ROS and upregulating antioxidant proteins, hydrogen can reduce the area of myocardial infarction, improve mitochondrial dysfunction in heart muscle, and regulate the levels of apoptosis-related substances. In a rat model, hydrogen inhalation therapy significantly restored the mitochondrial membrane potential of cardiac cells, increased ATP content, and enhanced mitochondrial complex activity.

Nervous System Diseases

Another study from 2025 found that hydrogen therapy significantly prevented cognitive deficits, oxidative stress, accumulation of toxic metabolites, and increased inflammatory markers in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease. Hydrogen therapy reduced toxic metabolites from the astrocytic urea cycle, thereby decreasing neurodegeneration and memory loss.

Image Reference 4 (Literature: Abdul-Nasir S, et al., Int J Mol Sci. 2025)

Asthma Research

Recent research has also confirmed that hydrogen inhalation effectively inhibits ovalbumin-induced asthma, leading to significant improvement in related lung inflammation. Hydrogen inhalation attenuated the immune response, reducing the levels of IL-4, IL-5, and IL-13, while increasing the mRNA expression levels of IL-10 and TGF-β1.

PART 04

// Multiple Pathways of Mechanism of Action //

The pathways through which hydrogen exerts its biological effects mainly include:

Antioxidant Pathway

Hydrogen has selective antioxidant properties, effectively removing malignant oxygen free radicals and reducing oxidative stress damage without affecting normal redox reactions.

Anti-inflammatory Pathway

Hydrogen can regulate the expression of various inflammatory factors, reducing levels of pro-inflammatory factors such as IL-4, IL-5, and IL-13, while increasing the expression of anti-inflammatory factors like IL-10.

Anti-apoptosis

By regulating the expression of apoptosis-related proteins such as Bcl-2, Bax, and Cyt-C, hydrogen can inhibit the mitochondrial-mediated apoptosis pathway.

Improved Energy Metabolism

Hydrogen can improve mitochondrial function, increase ATP content, restore membrane potential, and enhance mitochondrial complex activity.

PART 05

// Future Application Scenarios //

With the accumulation of clinical evidence, the application prospects of hydrogen medicine are increasingly broad. A 2023 review article pointed out that the clinical applications of hydrogen molecules in the central nervous system, endocrine system, and inflammation have laid a preliminary foundation for its use in treating more diseases. Research by Academician Zhong Nanshan's team has charted a course for the standardized development of hydrogen medicine. In the future, as more high-level clinical research is conducted, hydrogen is expected to become a new adjuvant treatment option for various diseases.

Image Reference 5 (Screenshot Source: Journal of Shandong First Medical University)

From laboratory research to clinical application, from academic papers to clinical practice, hydrogen medicine has traveled an extraordinary fifteen years. Academician Zhong Nanshan's five endorsements are not only recognition of the scientific value of hydrogen medicine but also a guide for its standardized development. With more high-quality clinical research underway, the medical "miracle" of this smallest molecule promises new possibilities for human health.

Text | Self-written, partially data sourced from the internet
Images | Original clinical literature, internet
Cover | Self-designed

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