If you’re planning to bend the truth, consider holding off on that bathroom break. A new study suggests that needing to pee might actually make you a more convincing liar.
At first, this sounds absurd. Lying takes focus, and anyone doing the “potty dance” knows it’s hard to think straight when your bladder is bursting. But the effort to hold it in may actually suppress your inhibitions, helping you lie more effectively.
Psychologist Iris Blandón-Gitlin explains that lying and bladder control both require self-control. Suppressing the urge to pee activates the brain’s inhibitory control centers—the same ones that help suppress guilt and hesitation when lying.
This builds on a 2011 study showing that a full bladder improves impulse control. While it’s tempting to relieve yourself the moment nature calls, delaying gratification activates mental processes that might spill over into other tasks, like crafting a believable lie.
In Blandón-Gitlin’s experiment, participants either sipped water or guzzled glasses. Later, they delivered both a truth and a lie on camera. Observers found that the group with fuller bladders told more convincing lies, excelling in both words and body language.
“Lying is a difficult task,” Blandón-Gitlin notes. “You have to juggle a lot of information.” Apparently, juggling a full bladder can give you an edge.
While more research is needed, one takeaway is clear: if you absolutely need to lie, maybe hold it in. Just don’t let things go too far!
Credit: Smithsonian