Summer Break Hydration

We have reached the last newsletter of the school year.  

As a community, we've been actively promoting healthy eating habits through our weekly articles about life in the kitchen. With the summer holidays just a few days away and the heatwave this summer, we must all be more mindful of our fluid intake. Your role in this is crucial, and we appreciate your efforts in ensuring our students' well-being.  

The heat increases our body's need for fluids, and it's up to each of us to ensure we're staying hydrated. Having a bottle of water with you is always a good idea. Tap or non-carbonated mineral water, the best way to quench our thirst, is readily available. But remember, soups, vegetable and fruit juices, fruit smoothies, lemonades, and iced teas (best if you make them yourself) also help to increase our fluid intake, so feel empowered to make and drink them. Highly hydrated fruit and vegetables, as well as the foods and drinks made from them, also help to cool the body down. That's why our kitchens offer cold fruit and vegetable soups in the summer, such as this week's refreshing Cucumber Soup.  

However, it is important to stress that fruit juices and smoothies are not a substitute for drinking water, and their unlimited consumption is not recommended due to their natural sugar content.  These drinks are mainly intended to supplement our fluid intake. They are recommended to be consumed in 2-3 dl daily quantities.  

For more information on hydration, see the links below:  

The importance of hydration - British Dietetic Association (BDA)

Fluid (water and drinks) and hydration - British Dietetic Association (BDA)

We want to thank you for reading our content, and we trust that many of you have found our articles helpful and informative and have tried the recipes we have shared.  

We would also love to hear your feedback on our work. If you are interested, please let us know if you are happy with our article series.  

The kitchen team wishes you all a great summer!