Pantone's new colour chart has a seriously surprising purpose

We know Pantone has a penchant for collaborating on moments of cultural significance, but its most recent partnership is for a slightly different cause. Yup, Pantone has joined forces with water brand Highland Spring in a campaign to get the world drinking more, you've guessed it, water. 

Under the guidance of a top nutritionist, Pantone and Highland Spring have created the Pee Healthy Guide – a colour chart that helps you to chart your hydration levels. Though the concept totally works, this is pretty wee-ird, right? And you probably don't need to know much about colour theory to guess the hues involved.

Each of the five shades of yellow are labelled with judgements about the colour of your wee (try not to take it personally), so you know whether it's time to chug down a glass of water (or two). Those judgements range from 'feeling good' through 'glass half full' to the more alarming 'dry spell'. Based on guidance from nutritionist Lily Soutter, who used the NHS Nutrition and Dietetics Urine Colour chart, it's one to take seriously. 

Assumedly, you'll need to keep this colour chart close at all times or perhaps stick one up in your toilet so you can refer to it when urine the loo (sorry). But we assume tap water works just as well as Highland Spring so there's no need to break the bank hydrating. It looks like Pantone chose the right colour for 2021 after all.

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