Hydration, Water, and Our Brains
Whenever someone comes and sits down in my office we have questions we have to ask, but there are a few that stand out to me when we’re talking about building a foundation for improving mental health. When looking at how to care for your mental wellness in the new year; water is a great place to start.
Research has found a connection between hydration status with several mental conditions and functions. Hydration can impact depression, anxiety, mental sharpness (acuity), memory and attention.
A research study of over 3000 Iranian adults observed an association between drinking water and depression. Those who had the highest water intake also had the lowest incidences of depression.
There was another study done on children 9 to 11 years old in the United States, which also had similar findings. The children who drank higher amounts of water, in this case 10.5 cups per day, had greater mental flexibility. These same kids were also found to have lower incidences of depression when compared to 9- to 11-year-olds that drank less water.
An additional study of college aged male individuals in China discovered that dehydration has confirmed negative effects on energy, self-esteem, short term memory, reaction time, and attention span.
The number of studies is limited, but the results suggest that there’s an association between hydration status and mental health, including mood and cognitive performance.
Even beyond just consuming water, being around it can be beneficial to your mental wellness. In “Blue Mind,” Dr. Nichols discusses how the monotony and familiarity of water actually allows us to relax our brains. Whether or not you have access to a physical body of water, taking the time to visit your local aquarium can provide similar benefits to walking along the shoreline.
At the National Marine Aquarium in Plymouth, England, researchers performed a study to monitor blood pressure, heart rate and self-reported relaxation levels and moods of over 100 guests after they spent 10 minutes gazing into an aquarium exhibit.
And of course, there is much more to our mental wellbeing than water intake or being near it, but I think helping build a basis for your psychological self-care so your mental health can be adequately supported is important. For the same reason that if you do not have basic needs met like housing, food, or physical safety, those individuals do not always have the capacity to consider life purpose, fulfillment or self-concept because their body and mind are concerned with surviving. In this same way, we must nourish the body, with water, food, and sun to help build a good foundation to improve or build better mental wellness. To learn more about your mental wellness and how to care for it, or talk more about it, please contact Life Enhancement Counseling Services at 407-443-8862 to schedule an appointment with one of our licensed mental health counselors.
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