RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: Investigate the effectiveness of H4O in preventing the paraquat's effect in rats. MATERIAL AND METHOD: Disease-free male spraque Dawley rats were used in the experiment. They were divided into two groups of 5, as the control group and the experiment group. All rats were poisoned with paraquat. The control group was fed water (H2O) while the experiment group was fed activated hydrogen ions (H4O). RESULTS: The mortality of rats was equal (40%) in both groups. The control group died earlier than the experimental group (48 hours, 96 hours). In the rats that could survive till 1 month, the pathology of the lungs in the experimental group revealed less severity than the control group. CONCLUSION: This may reflect the protective effects of activated hydrogen ions in the lungs, which are abundant in oxygen, and may offer fruitful results in humans.