Dr. Babu Sudhakar is the Chairman and Managing Director of Serene Envirotech Solutions Pvt. Ltd. a Mumbai based start-up company which is into reinforcing community wellbeing with its innovative, customer centric and eco-friendly health-tech products, meant for domestic and personal use. Having built a reputation of introducing world class innovative products to Indian markets and with over 23 years of association with diversified businesses across Asian countries, Dr. Babu is also associated with two more companies as their Managing Director – JENS Enviro Technologies Ltd., a German Partnership Venture to cater in water and waste water treatment and related technologies; & SRIBS BIOTECHNIQS PRIVATE LIMITED, a company into Animal, Aquaculture & Agriculture Healthcare products development, marketing in India, Vietnam and other countries. Dr. Babu holds a Doctorate (Ph.D.) in microbiology and during his tenure a research work was carried out at National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI), Nagpur, India for a Department of Biotechnology, Government of India sponsored project.
Oxygen is an element indispensable for life. When cells use oxygen to generate energy, free radicals are created as a consequence of ATP (adenosine triphosphate) production by the mitochondria.
These by-products are generally reactive oxygen species (ROS) as well as reactive nitrogen species (RNS) that result from the cellular redox process. These species play a dual role as both toxic and beneficial compounds. The delicate balance between their two antagonistic effects is clearly an important aspect of life.
At low or moderate levels, ROS and RNS exert beneficial effects on cellular responses and immune function. At high concentrations, they generate cellular oxidative stress, a deleterious process that can damage all cell structures.
Oxidative stress plays a major part in the development of chronic and degenerative ailments such as arthritis, ageing, autoimmune disorders, cardiovascular, neurodegenerative diseases and cancer.
The human body has several mechanisms to counteract oxidative stress by producing antioxidants, which are either naturally produced in situ, or externally supplied through foods and/or supplements. Endogenous and exogenous antioxidants act as “free radical scavengers” by preventing and repairing damages caused by ROS and RNS, and therefore can enhance the immune defence and lower the risk of cancer and degenerative diseases.
The use of medical gasses has been recently described as an emerging exotic strategy in the exercise physiology and sports medicine community as performance-enhancing agents. Among others, molecular hydrogen (H2) appears as an innovative compound that might be applicable among athletes.
Usually administered in the form of either hydrogen-rich water or hydrogen-inhalation, H2 appears to positively affect exercise capacity in human trials. This might be due to its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties that perhaps reduce exercise-induced inflammation and oxidative stress or through alteration of anabolic hormones production by signal modulation.
Molecular hydrogen is especially important for athletes. It works to help the body to recover from intense physical activity much quicker.
Recent studies suggests that H2 has therapeutic value for diseases that involve inflammation, thus raising the possibility of its use in the athletic environment by counterbalancing biomarkers of exercise-induced inflammation and damage (e.g., creatine kinase, myoglobin, ferritin, C-reactive protein).
According to a pilot study from 2012, hydrogen water works by preventing oxidative stress. When your body is dealing with oxidative stress, your muscles can become worn out or inflamed. When soccer players were given molecular hydrogen, their muscles were able to recover more quickly. They saw fewer negative effects.
If you want to get molecular hydrogen into your body, you have a handful of options, but major ones are:
- Inhaling hydrogen gas
- Drinking hydrogen water
Addition of inhaling H2 gas or drinking hydrogen water, to your fitness or athletic routine can be extremely beneficial to your activities, so your body can bounce back from muscle fatigue.