You’ve put on your coziest pajamas, dimmed the lights, and brushed your teeth. Your bed feels like a cloud, and you’re almost ready to drift off to sleep. There’s just one problem: your throat feels dry and you suddenly have this urge to chug water, when moments ago you felt just fine. Sound familiar? Up until now, you may have thought that bedtime thirst was just another one of your bedtime rituals, but new research suggests that there’s actually an underlying biological need.
Why You Feel Thirsty In General
Up to 60% of the adult body is composed of water. And when there is an increase in osmolyte concentration or a deficit in normal body water, whether it’s through lack of water consumption, sickness, exercise or heat stress, the brain signals thirst. By the time you’re thirsty, your body is already dehydrated as “our thirst mechanism lags behind our actual level of hydration”. So is this why you feel thirsty before bed? Surprisingly, no.
Why You Feel Thirsty Before Going To Bed
In a recent study published by McGill University, researchers studied the water intake of mice before bed. They discovered that like people, mice experience a surge in drinking right before they fall asleep. Examining the brain activity of the mice, researchers found that the biological clock of their brains signaled to the mice it was time to drink, the closer it got to their bedtime. The signal sent by the brain was like the one sent when dehydration occurs, however the mice were perfectly hydrated. When researchers restricted the water intake of mice before bed, the mice would awake hours later dehydrated and confused. The team concluded the brains reasoning behind sending those biological thirst signals before bed, was to prevent future dehydration.
Well, there’s your answer! We all hate waking up to go to the bathroom but waking up dehydrated is worse. So, drink a glass of water before you go to sleep even if you don’t feel so thirsty. This will ensure that you’re properly hydrated for the long hours of sleep ahead of you, and it’s better for your overall health as well! If you need a little flavor or a little boost to help you sleep, try a can of Som Sleep before bed. The berry-flavored sleep drink supplement will not only help you stay hydrated, but it will also ensure you sleep well through the night and wake up feeling refreshed and looking forward to the day!