Study: making sense of hydration

Hydration can be a confusing topic with contradictory suggestions and answers coming from a variety of sources, but new research looked to make relatable sense of it all.

Researchers at the University of Connecticut tried to find a way for men to understand how hydrated they are without expensive measurements or time consuming tests. They came to a seemingly simple conclusion.

The study had 29 university-aged men have their hydration tested one morning and rank their thirst on a nine-point scale. At a later date it had them do the same on a different morning after being advised to eat and follow their normal routine, but to not drink anything the 19 hours before.

The participants lost about two per cent of their body weight, on average, which is enough for significant dehydration. In the morning they rated their thirst at an average of  seven, compared to two in the original testing. They also had significantly less urine waking up in the morning. The authors suggest that, as you may expect, the research found one of the best ways to easily know if you’re dehydrated is to monitor your urine colour and volume, and to pay attention to if you feel thirsty in the mornings.

This is just a small piece of work in a growing body of research around hydration. It comes shortly after a paper found that the idea of moderate coffee consumption causing dehydration may be overestimated, and people who are regular consumers of it may contribute to rehydration.

There was also research done last year that showed overhydration will prevent poor running performance the next day. Rehydrating only 75 per cent of lost body weight showed notable drops in performance the following day compared to rehydrating 150 per cent of lost body weight. Those who only rehydrated 75 per cent also rated their runs as being more difficult the following day, despite slower results.