Evaluation of the benefits of neutral bicarbonate ionized water baths in an open-label, randomized, crossover trial

• Published in: Scientific reports 2024-01, Vol.14 (1), p.1261-1261, Article 1261
• Main Authors: Ushikoshi-Nakayama, Ryoko, Yamazaki, Tomoe, Omagari, Daisuke, Matsumoto, Naoyuki, Inoue, Hiroko, Nukuzuma, Chiyoko, Nishino, Seiji, Saito, Ichiro
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 631/443; 631/443/1338; 631/443/1338/2729; 692/700; Baths; Bicarbonates; Blood flow; CD4 antigen; CD8 antigen; Cross-Over Studies; Fluctuations; Humanities and Social Sciences; Humans; Immune response; Immunological memory; Laboratory tests; Latency; Leukocytes (neutrophilic); Lymphocytes T; Memory cells; multidisciplinary; Occupational health; Phagocytosis; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Sleep; Sleep - physiology; Water
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-51851-9

We previously demonstrated that neutral bicarbonate ionized water (NBIW) bathing enhances blood flow by bicarbonate ions and described the underlying mechanism. However, additional clinical investigation was warranted to investigate the efficacy of NBIW bathing. Hence, we performed a randomized, open-label, crossover trial to examine the effects of NBIW bathing on mental stress, sleep, and immune function. Participants who regularly felt stressed were randomly assigned to NBIW or regular bathing for 4 weeks. Mental stress was assessed with the Brief Job Stress Questionnaire (BJSQ) and the Profile of Mood States Second Edition; sleep quality, with the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index Japanese version (PSQI-J) and actigraphy; and immune function, with laboratory tests. PSQI-J scores and actigraphy sleep latency and bed out latency improved significantly more with NBIW bathing than with regular bathing ( p