Mental health has become a huge challenge during and post the pandemic. While mental health has always been a tough issue to deal with, given the lack of scientific and medical progress with regards to conditions, as well as the social stigma attached to the same, of late, it has become a lot more common, impacting a wide percentage of the overall population. This is being attributed to a host of factors, including social isolation and the impact of social media.

However, when it comes to temporary mental health challenges, caused by external factors, there are various lifestyle changes that one can incorporate to make things better. Talking and sharing your feeling with friends and family, journaling, opting for a healthier and more active lifestyle, and so on are just some of the things being recommended.

Interestingly, and unfortunately, one of the most overlooked factors is the importance of adequate hydration and its impact on mental health. That’s right; no doctor, therapist, friend, or family member would have mentioned that you consider being well-hydrated to boost your mental health. This is due to a host of factors.

Why we tend to overlook hydration for mental health

The fact is that in our culture, water has been revere as a sacred element and yet, owing to its natural abundance, we have taken pristine, pure water for good health, as one that is to taken for granted. We have little considered the possibility of lack of access to adequate levels of water or the possibility of dehydration. This is because back in the days, our ancestors were never too busy to drink water or too far from a glass of water. However, today, we often don’t realize that we need to drink water even before we feel thirsty. This is because thirst is a sign that our body is already experiencing mild dehydration. Moreover, we tend to ignore our thirst for a while if we are travelling and do not have a bottle of water on us or if we are on the middle of a critical work meeting or personal commitment. Lastly, sometimes we may be in a set-up where we are unsure about the water being safe enough for drinking and hence, we tend to avoid drinking water until later. All of this takes a toll on our health, including mental health, when it takes place on a frequent basis owing to habits.

The impact of hydration on mental health

Water in general, and mineral water especially, have a major impact on mental health. In fact, hydration is directly linked to mood swings, anxiety, and depression. It is perhaps the reason why we are always advised to sit back and have a glass of water in the middle of a heated debate or a tense situation. This is because when water gets depleted from our body, our mind is unable to concentrate and operate in the most optimal manner. Further, scientists have established a link between hydration and mental make-up. Hence, it is best to stay well-hydrated if you find yourself falling prone to anxiety, depression, and similar mental health challenges. Also, while it is only one of the contributing factors, hydration has been identified as having a link to chronic mental health conditions such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s among other conditions.

Ways to improve hydration for mental health

Now all of this begs the question – how to do we ensure better hydration for mental health? First of all, consider making a switch to mineral water since essential minerals are often lost when drinking water is purified at home using processes such as RO. These minerals go a long way in ensuring sound mental health. Secondly, consider investing in packaged mineral water bottles and can in various sizes – this ensure you always have water handy at home, and when you are on-the-go. This can help keep you well-hydrated at all times and improve hydration for your mental health. For instance, a 1 litre bottle is ideal for the gym while a 200 ml water bottle can fit perfectly into a sling when you are headed for small errands under the hot sun.

Conclusion

When it comes to ensuring hydration for mental health, switching to packaged mineral water is the single big lifestyle change that you need to make. This is because given today’s busy urban lifestyle, it is easy to skip on drinking water frequently in the race to finish up on other seemingly urgent tasks when you don’t have handy access to safe drinking water. However, this results in mild dehydration without us even knowing it, and the in the long run, it can have a negative impact on one’s mental health.