Water Consumption Increases Handwriting Speed and Volume Consumed Relates to Increased Finger‑tapping Speed in Schoolchildren

Evidence shows that having a drink of water can improve cognitive performance in schoolchildren. This study investigated whether water consumption would improve a range of tasks requiring both cognitive and fine motor skills. Participants were 85 children (37 boys, 48 girls, mean age 10.1 years, SD = 0.6) attending a primary school in the UK. Children completed finger-tapping, bead threading, and handwriting tasks at baseline and test. They were divided into two groups; one group was offered a 500-ml bottle of water after baseline tasks were completed and the other group was not. The drink group were given 5 min to consume the water and they could choose how much to drink. We also recorded the volume of water consumed in order to consider dose response relationships. Participants in both groups were given a 25-min break, during which they could read quietly, before repeating the tasks at test. Results showed that the participants who were given a drink, regardless of volume, had faster handwriting speed at test than those who did not. Correlations between volume drunk and changes in performance from baseline to test showed there was a positive relationship between volume drunk and improvement in finger-tapping speed. These results show that the simple intervention of giving children a drink of water has a beneficial effect on fine motor skills, and handwriting, which is an integral activity in school.

This is a post-peer-review, pre-copyedit version of an article to be published in Journal of Cognitive Enhancement. The final authenticated version is available online at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s41465-021-00232-5