What is mental fitness?
Just like physical fitness, your mental fitness has a significant impact on your quality of life. Both work and leisure are influenced by your ability to solve problems, concentrate, plan ahead, apply knowledge, get organised and take action on personal decisions. Mental fitness also relates to your memory and brain function. New research on men has shown that hydration levels, or how much water your drink, can have an impact on cognitive performance and mood.
The research
A study reported in the British Journal of Nutrition examined the effects of mild dehydration on cognitive performance of young males. Behavioural tasks were selected to assess a range of cognitive functions, such as reaction time, learning, working memory and logical reasoning. The researchers found mild dehydration (fluid levels down by 1.59%) in men resulted in:
There was no reporting of symptoms associated with more severe levels of dehydration such as headaches or loss of concentration, demonstrating that it only takes mild levels of dehydration to have detrimental effects. According to the researchers, this mild level of dehydration may be encountered routinely by adults during daily activities. The researchers said the exact mechanisms responsible for the deterioration of cognitive performance and mood resulting from mild dehydration are not known, but they did speculate that changes in electrolyte balance may be involved. Mild dehydration may also result in thicker blood, which could impair the delivery of nutrients and removal of waste at a cellular level.
Tips on staying hydrated
While staying hydrated is important for your physical and mental health, there is no “one size fits all” rule on how much water to drink. This is because water needs vary considerably between individuals due to weight, age, gender, diet, other beverages consumed, air temperature and humidity, occupation, fitness, physical activity levels and illness. The following tips offer some guidelines on how to drink enough water to keep your brain and body firing on all cylinders:
References available upon request