Should children drink more water? The effects of drinking water on cognition in children

Article

Edmonds, C. and Burford, Denise 2009. Should children drink more water? The effects of drinking water on cognition in children. Appetite. 52 (3), pp. 776-779.
AuthorsEdmonds, C. and Burford, Denise
Abstract

While dehydration has well-documented negative effects on adult cognition, there is little research on hydration and cognitive performance in children. We investigated whether having a drink of water improved children's performance on cognitive tasks. Fifty-eight children aged 7–9 years old were randomly allocated to a group that received additional water or a group that did not. Results showed that children who drank additional water rated themselves as significantly less thirsty than the comparison group (p = 0.002), and they performed better on visual attention tasks (letter cancellation, p = 0.02; spot the difference memory tasks, ps = 0.019 and 0.014).

KeywordsHydration; Children; Drinking water; Cognition
JournalAppetite
Journal citation52 (3), pp. 776-779
ISSN0195-6663
Year2009
Accepted author manuscript
License
CC BY-ND
Web address (URL)http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2009.02.010
http://hdl.handle.net/10552/448
Publication dates
PrintJun 2009
Publication process dates
Deposited17 Dec 2009
Additional information

Citation:
Edmonds, C.J. & Burford, D. (2009). ‘Should children drink more water? The effects of drinking water on cognition in children’, Appetite 52 (3) 776-779.

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Accepted author manuscript
Edmonds, CJ (2009) Appetite 52(3) 776-779.pdf
License: CC BY-ND

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