Even mild dehydration can lead to depression/headaches

[Magical Realist]

I was struck last night by a certain bad mood. I felt irritable and depressed. This was untypical for me. After awhile of persistent gloom and cynicism, I thought what the hell--maybe I'm dehydrated. So I gulped down two tumblers of crystal lite lemonade. The difference was dramatic. I felt such a rush of euphoria come over me in about an hour I couldn't believe it. I likened my brain to a dry sponge suddenly soaked in water. All the neurotransmitters now flowing thru the blood to various synapses, lighting it up like a christmas tree. Next time an unaccountable bad mood overtakes you, hydrate!

http://www.webmd.com/women/news/20120120...problems#1

[Syne]

I don't ever get depressed, but I can relate to dehydration headaches. Seems the older I get the more sensitive to dehydration I become.

[scheherazade]

Mild dehydration is often mistaken for hunger because it can present as a craving for food, especially salty snacks or sweets, and when people ingest foods of lessor nutritional value, the body requires more water to process them. Our food industry caters to this propensity by marketing endless variations of snacks, many of which they flog as healthier alternatives.

Water is also needed for our skin and joints to perform at their optimum and I suspect that a far greater percentage of the population is mildly dehydrated than we might presume.

[RainbowUnicorn]

I was struck last night by a certain bad mood. I felt irritable and depressed. This was untypical for me. After awhile of persistent gloom and cynicism, I thought what the hell--maybe I'm dehydrated. So I gulped down two tumblers of crystal lite lemonade. The difference was dramatic. I felt such a rush of euphoria come over me in about an hour I couldn't believe it. I likened my brain to a dry sponge suddenly soaked in water. All the neurotransmitters now flowing thru the blood to various synapses, lighting it up like a christmas tree. Next time an unaccountable bad mood overtakes you, hydrate!

http://www.webmd.com/women/news/20120120...problems#1

how much sugar was in it ?
if your blood sugar was low AND you were dehydrated, then it would be quite a thing the likes of which you mention.
you may wish to retest the theory with just sugar by removing all added sugar from your diet for 1.5 days (no sugar in drinks no chocolate etc)
make sure you stay hydrated though.
then after around 30 hours have a sugary drink like normal lemonade.
oh yes FYI the citric acid(or something) in real lemon juice is an actual stimulant.

[Magical Realist]

how much sugar was in it ?

Entirely sugar free!

oh yes FYI the citric acid(or something) in real lemon juice is an actual stimulant.

No..it's not the lemon flavoring. It's hydration. Why are you doubting this? Science backs me up on this.

[scheherazade]

I quite support the theory that mild dehydration can contribute to a number of symptoms and conditions.

You will also never induce me to drink the majority of such beverages as mentioned in the opening post because of the ingredients that are used.
Just my personal take from 11 years of research and working in the grocery industry. I react to artificial color and would rather not ingest many other of the
items listed below. I prefer water and making iced tea and lemonade the old fashioned way.

Let's take a look at the ingredients in Crystal Light Natural Lemonade. Citric Acid: an organic acid that comes from citrus fruits. It acts as a natural preservative and is also used to make foods and beverages taste sour.

Potassium Citrate & Sodium Citrate: mineral salts used as flavor enhancers. Potassium citrate is found naturally in many foods such as bananas, citrus fruits, melons, tomatoes, apricots, some fish, green leafy vegetables, whole-grains, and legumes.

Aspartame: Non-nutritive sweetener or sugar substitute, found in a multitude of sugar-free foods. Although aspartame was once controversial, its safety has been affirmed by the FDA 26 times in the past 23 years.

Magnesium Oxide: Anti-caking agent. Some foods tend to coagulate (clump together), and anti-caking agents prevent this.

Natural Flavor: According to the Code of Federal Regulations, "The term natural flavor or natural flavoring means the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof, whose significant function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional." Both artificial and natural flavors are made by "flavorists" in a laboratory by combining either "natural" chemicals or "synthetic" chemicals to make flavorings.

Lemon Juice Solids: solids extracted from lemons and then turned into a powder.

Acesulfame Potassium: Non-nutritive sweetener.

Soy Lecithin: An emulsifier (keeps ingredients from separating).

Artificial Color: Coloring not found in nature--it's produced in a lab.

Yellow 5: Synthetically produced (man-made) coloring agent used to make foods more visually appealing (offsets color loss from exposure to light, air, temperature extremes, or moisture, or enhance naturally-occurring colors, or provide color to "colorless" foods).
BHA (Butylated hydroxyanisole): An antioxidant that acts as a preservative (preserving odor, color, and flavor).

[Magical Realist]

I hate the taste of water. I will never give up my Crystal Lite.

[RainbowUnicorn]

I hate the taste of water. I will never give up my Crystal Lite.

contains Aspartame and phenylalanine
(i dearly urge you to find something else to drink)

picture of the back showing ingredients


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phenylalanine

Phenylalanine is a precursor for tyrosine; the monoamine neurotransmitters dopamine, norepinephrine (noradrenaline), and epinephrine (adrenaline); and the skin pigment melanin.

i do not wish to turn you into a lab rat, i am only posting this out of concern.
the rush you felt though can be attributed to dehydration is probably linked to a deficiency in something that converts your protiens into amino acids... (vitamin C)
being very low in vitamin C for a day or two and then being dehydrated and then taking water & Phenylalanine would definitely give you a buzz after around 45 minutes once you metabolise it.
takes around an hour to feel the effect of re-hydration and around 30 to 40 minutes to get the Phenylalanine into the brain.
if you can just remove the Aspartame from it.

[scheherazade]

I hate the taste of water. I will never give up my Crystal Lite.

A lot of people do not like water which is quite natural given that the industry offers us so many flavored options and alternate beverages.
I am fortunate to have my own well and the water that comes from it is simply unmatched anywhere else that I have been as it comes from deep in the ground, completely untreated.

I would not presume to tell you what to drink, though I decline most commercial beverages as being non-beneficial to health.

Most authorities still cite plain water as the fastest and best means of hydration, though other avenues are still better than not hydrating at all.

[Magical Realist]

takes around an hour to feel the effect of re-hydration

Right..that's how I know it was hydration. I could also feel the pressure in my skull increasing,, a sure sign of brain hydration.

I'm not giving up anything on your advice. Deal with it.