Mild dehydration appears to affect mood and cognitive ability of young athletes in addition to impacting physical performance, according to a new ARS study. Dehydration has long been known to compromise physical performance. Now science has found that  even mild dehydration has serious effects on athletes, and lives of people too busy to consume enough water daily.(study b Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and a U.S. Army grant) Dehydration Affects Mood, Not Just Motor Skills, November 24, 2009 By Rosalie Marion Bliss Dehydration Affects Mood, Not Just Motor Skills

Researchers wanted to explore the effects of dehydration on cognition—the ability to use information to function—and mood.

The study adds to a relatively new area of research and was published recently in Perceptual and Motor Skills. Athletes commonly lose between 2 and 4 percent of their body weight during athletic practice. The

About 30 male and female Tufts University students, with an average age of 20, participated in the study. When students were assigned to the “dehydration group,” they were not given fluids during athletics. When in the control condition, they were given water throughout athletics. Dehydration Affects Mood, Not Just Motor Skills, November 24, 2009 By Rosalie Marion Bliss Dehydration Affects Mood, Not Just Motor Skills

The participants weighed in before and after athletics to assess body water loss. After athletic activity, participants underwent cognitive tests, which included short-term memory and mood scales among others. The researchers found that dehydration was associated with negative mood, including fatigue and confusion, compared to the hydrated group. Dehydration Affects Mood, Not Just Motor Skills,November 24, 2009 By Rosalie Marion Bliss Dehydration Affects Mood, Not Just Motor Skills

Even though the dehydration of between 1 percent and 2 percent it was powerful enough to cause their moods to change, bring fatigue and confusion.  This study showed what can happen to people in their daily lives from drinking insufficient amounts of water.

 Dehydration Affects Mood, Not Just Motor Skills, November 24, 2009 By Rosalie Marion Bliss