GULP

I just read an article about mistakes that drivers make. I secretly hoped that it would be things I don't do, like cutting people up, squishing up to the car in front, or signalling at the last possible moment.

It turned out to be a list of things I do actually do, and hadn't realised. I scrolled through, feeling guilty at sneaking a look at my phone at the traffic lights, leaving home at the last minute, and not checking my mirrors before flicking on the indicator.

The last one in the list though, stopped me in my tracks. Number ten was 'Not drinking enough water'.

My Mum's always saying I don't drink enough water. I'd always thought it was to do with kidneys, but this article was suggesting something much more impacting. Dehydration, it said, even before you realise you're thirsty can reduce concentration, increase levels of anxiety and cause fatigue.

You know how you know something, but you sort of don't think about it, and then you realise that you'd forgotten it? That's how I felt. One half of my brain screamed: Really? Is that true? and the other half calmly nodded and said Mmhm.

So I looked it up. I searched for some scientific papers on the connection between dehydration and physical performance.

I found out some very interesting things. Did you know, for example, that the taste buds send messages to the brain about the salt content of the liquid in your mouth, long before it hits the bloodstream? The brain then sends advance warning to the cells (which flagged up thirstiness in the first place) and the neurons respond as if the water had already arrived!

Anyway, here's what one paper said about water intake...

"Water, or its lack (dehydration), can influence cognition. Mild levels of dehydration can produce disruptions in mood and cognitive functioning. This may be of special concern in the very young, very old, those in hot climates, and those engaging in vigorous exercise. Mild dehydration produces alterations in a number of important aspects of cognitive function such as concentration, alertness and short-term memory... 

As with physical functioning, mild to moderate levels of dehydration can impair performance on tasks such as short-term memory, perceptual discrimination, arithmetic ability, visuomotor tracking, and psychomotor skills."

- Water, Hydration and Health, Popkin, D'Anci and Rosenburg, Nutrition Review, Aug 2010.

There were more warnings too. Young women are the most susceptible, dehydration can affect you before you realise you're thirsty and even a 1.5% loss of water can cause the symptoms of dehydration, leading to tension, anxiety, perhaps even mood swings.

Gulp.

All this had me heading for the kitchen and looking for a glass. Health authorities suggest two litres (half a gallon) of water every day, in addition to the water taken in from food and other liquids. That's eight tumblers of water. I don't get anywhere near that.

I started to wonder whether a small experiment might be in order - an empirical one of course, I don't live and work in a controlled environment. What is there to lose? Concentration and short-term memory apparently. I reckon it's worth a try. So for the next few weeks, I'm going to try to drink two litres of water every day and see what happens.

Hopefully, I'll remember to do it and not get depressed half-way through.

Gulp, indeed.