Increased Concentrations of Breath Hydrogen Gas in Japanese.pdf

101 Introduction Hyd rogen molecu le i s composed of t wo protons and two electrons, and it is the smallest and most highly combustible gas molecule. Hydrogen is generally considered to be physiologically inert, similarly to nitrogen, even under hyperbaric conditions, and it is often used in deep-sea diving applications 1). Dole et al. 2) reported the therapeutic potential of hydrogen gas, demonstrating that a mixture of 2.5% oxygen and 97.5% hydrogen at a total pressure of 8 atmospheres caused a regression of skin tumors in hairless albino mice. Since Ohsawa et al. 3) reported that 2-4% hydrogen gas could act as an antioxidant by selectively reducing cytotoxic oxygen radicals, the beneficial effects of hydrogen gas and hydrogen-rich water have been documented in various disease models and human diseases 1,4). It is intriguing that hydrogen gas produced by colonic fermentation could also act as an antioxidant 4,5), potentially preventing age-related deleterious diseases. There is no source of hydrogen gas for humans other than bacterial metabolism of carbohydrates, and the hydrogen gas is quickly absorbed into the portal circulation and partially excreted by the lungs 6). Accordingly, hydrogen breath tests are commonly used to reveal functional gastrointestinal disorders, including carbohydrate malabsorption and small intestinal bacterial overgrowth 7). In the current study, the breath hydrogen gas was measured in centenarians who were thought to have evaded life-threatening diseases to determine whether intestinal production of hydrogen gas could have any association with longevity. Original Article Increased Concentrations of Breath Hydrogen Gas in Japanese Centenarians Yuji Aoki The Department of Internal Medicine, National Hospital Organization Matsumoto Medical Center Matsumoto Hospital Abstract Purpose: It has been demonstrated that hydrogen gas and hydrogen-rich water may act as a therapeutic antioxidant. Hydrogen gas produced by