If you’ve spent much time browsing my ADD Success blog you know I often rattle on about decreasing ADD / ADHD symptoms with good self care: sleep, diet and exercise.

I’m about to add another item to my list: drink enough water.

Linking dehydration and ADHD came to my attention last week while I was waiting for my Berry Blast Smoothie at my favorite juice bar.

I noticed a small poster on the wall listing the negative effects of dehydration. Not far down the list was what they called Brain Fog – feeling forgetful and spacey along with difficulty thinking and concentrating.

Wow….Brain Fog. That sounds a lot like Attention Deficit, doesn’t it?

Next chance I got I did a bit of research on dehydration and brain functioning.

Seems those wise guys at Kings College in London have tested the effects of dehydration on brain function.

They made some healthy, non-ADHD adolescents exercise and didn’t give some of them water. They then gave the kids MRIs and had them take a problem solving test.

The Results? The dehydrated kids had to think harder to solve the problems than the non-dehydrated kids.

Remember, these are kids who don’t have ADHD. They suffered ‘Brain Fog’ because of dehydration.

Here’s what the study’s authors concluded in official terms: “Given the limited availability of brain metabolic resources, these findings suggest that prolonged states of reduced water intake may adversely impact executive functions such as planning and visuo-spatial processing.” ( References: 1. Kempton KJ, et al. Dehydration affects brain structure and function in healthy adolescents. Human Brain Mapping 24 March 2010)

So my twist on dehydration and ADHD? You have to drink enough water. Because if dehydration makes it harder for a non-ADHD brain to do what it needs to do, the impact on the ADHD brain will likely be even worse.

Give your brain all the help you can. Drink more water.

Stay tuned. In my next ADD Success Blog post I’ll give you ideas for how you can live more easily with adult ADHD and make it easier to remember to drink more water.