Author(s): BOAK, K., ROBERTS, C., RUMBOLD, P., TEMPEST, G.D., GREEN, B., JAMES, L., BRUCE-MARTIN, C., Institution: NORTHUMBRIA UNIVERSITY, Country: UNITED KINGDOM, Abstract-ID: 2244

INTRODUCTION
Children are at increased risk of dehydration due to their higher surface-to-mass ratio, different thirst sensitivities and body cooling mechanisms (1). A mild state of dehydration is associated with reduced cognitive performance such as attention, psychomotor and immediate memory skills (2). It has been found that children are in a hydration deficit for the majority of the school day - many of them arriving to school dehydrated (3). Therefore, in this systematic review, we examined nutritional hydration and cognition in children from traditional and grey literature resources.
METHODS
A literature search (conducted March 2023) of seven academic and three grey literature sources including handsearches and citation pearl growing was conducted. Search terms included: Children AND (Nutrition OR Hydration) AND (Cognition OR Learning). The sifting process involved a three-stage approach aligned to the PRISMA guidelines (4). Inclusion criteria were children aged 9-11 years, healthy populations, a drink-based intervention and acknowledgement of cognitive outcomes. Exclusion criteria were studies not available via open access.
RESULTS
Thirty-one papers were included in the final systematic review (26 from academic and 5 from grey literature sources). Included papers compromised of controlled trials (55%) and reviews (16%), plus other intervention and pilot studies and online articles. Seven overarching themes were identified through thematic analysis. The main findings indicated that children are at risk of dehydration, and their nutritional hydration habits are influenced by a variety of barriers and motivators within the school setting - such as access to drinks. Methodological findings included the use of objective and subjective methods to measure hydration and cognitive outcomes, with schools identified as an appropriate setting for intervention. Interventions predominantly featured water supplementation but several other drinks options were identified and tested for cognitive outcomes such as milk, fortified beverages, glucose beverages and wild blueberry drinks. Cognitive outcomes were described with using a plethora of psychology terminology highlighting the multidisciplinary input within the literature.
CONCLUSION
These findings contribute to the existing literature regarding nutritional hydration in children and the cognitive outcomes associated with several drinks options. The review highlighted differences and commonalities between the implementation of drinks-based interventions through motivators and barriers of nutritional hydration habits within the school setting. The unique inclusion of both academic and grey literature provides an overall representation of what information is available to influence school nutrition and hydration policy.
REFERENCES
1.D’Anci et al., In Nutrition Reviews, 2006
2.Adan, A. J American College of Nutrition, 2012
3.Fuchs et al., J Sch Health, 2016
4.Page et al., International J of Surgery, 2021