Dose-response effects of water supplementation on cognitive performance and mood in children and adults

Abstract

19Water supplementation has been found to facilitate visual attention and short-term memory, 20 but the dose required to improve performance is not yet known. We assessed the dose 21 response effect of water on thirst, mood and cognitive performance in both adults and 22 children. Participants were offered either no water, 25 ml or 300 ml water to drink. Study 1 23 assessed 96 adults and in Study 2, data are presented from 60 children aged 7-9 years. In both 24 studies, performance was assessed at baseline and 20 minutes after drinking (or no drink); on 25 thirst and mood scales, letter cancellation and a digit span test. For both children and adults, a 26 large drink (300 ml) was necessary to reduce thirst, while a small drink (25 ml) was sufficient 27 to improve visual attention (letter cancellation). In adults, a large drink improved digit span,

Development and relative validity of a self‐administered semi‐quantitative drinks frequency questionnaire, validated in a population of university students

“…Most epidemiological studies agree that frequent consumption of sugar‐sweetened drinks contributes to the onset of metabolic syndrome, by altering insulin sensitivity, even among young populations . In addition, excessive intakes of drinks (in particular soft and energy drinks) have been related to a number of other health ailments, such as dental erosions, behavioural, or bone problems, whereas inadequate hydration has been associated to reduced cognitive performance, memory and mood . Thus, monitoring drinks consumption is pivotal in achieving better hydration and correcting unhealthy drinking habits through education …”

“…6 In addition, excessive intakes of drinks (in particular soft and energy drinks) have been related to a number of other health ailments, such as dental erosions, 7 behavioural, 8 or bone problems, 9 whereas inadequate hydration has been associated to reduced cognitive performance, memory and mood. 10,11 Thus, monitoring drinks consumption is pivotal in achieving better hydration and correcting unhealthy drinking habits through education. 12 Assessment of a population's consumption patterns is often difficult, challenging and costly.…”

Prevalence of hypohydration in adolescents during the school day in Cyprus: seasonal variations

“…School in Cyprus starts early in the morning and ends at 13:30 when the temperature exceeds 30 °C from April-May onwards. If adolescents fail to maintain a normal level of hydration (euhydration), their overall health, concentration and cognitive performance at school could be adversely affected (9,11,15,16).…”

Cognitive Assessments in Hydration Research Involving Children: Methods and Considerations

“…Broadly speaking, areas of cognition that have illustrated the benefits of improved hydration and acute water intake include attention [7,[9][10][11][12], short-term memory [4,5,7,9], delayed memory [6], visual search [9,10,12,15], and executive function [14]. However, not all studies have supported a relationship between various hydration measures and cognition, with some reporting null or negative findings for short-term memory [9,11,12,15]. Of the studies referenced above, only 3 have collected urinary markers of hydration.…”

“…Few studies have sought to investigate the benefits of improved hydration on cognition, and even fewer have focused on children [see 2, 3 for reviews]. Within this limited literature, methods for assessing or modulating hydration have varied across child populations, with the majority focusing either on associations of urinary biomarkers, such as osmolality [4], or acute manipulations whereby hydration is manipulated via water intake and compared to addition-al intake conditions or control groups [5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12]. However, it is important to note that not all studies provide measures of urinary biomarkers.…”