Water is important, sure. But do you know one of the most important part of water is all of the unseen minerals and salts that float around in it that not only keep your body hydrated, but flowing with sweet sweet bio electricity? Assuming water isn’t distilled, the flavor and taste from water comes from the various minerals and salts that are inside of it that give it it’s flavor and nutritional value for your body. Today we look at what exactly electrolytes are, and how they’re essential for your health and not just buzzwords thrown around by energy drinks.
Sodium
Sodium and chloride together makes table salt, but sodium by itself is important for maintaining fluid balance, muscle and heart contraction, balance of PH, and blood pressure. It helps with transportation of nutrients and nerve impulses so every muscle fiber in your body can fire at full potential. An excess of sodium also has been associated with fluid retention and elevated blood pressure. I’m generally for the consumption of sodium and other salts, but if it’s specifically an imbalance of sodium that’s suspected it would be wise to consult with your doctor.
Where to find: Sodium is literally everywhere in modern diets. Salty foods are usually paired often with sweet ones since the combination of salt and sweet improves the flavor and it’s very cheap to add. A better source for sodium would be himalyan pink salt so that you get other trace minerals that your body needs.
Potassium
An under appreciated electrolyte that can function as a substitute for traditional sodium chlrodie. Potassium usually only comes up when talking about bananas and is crucial for maintaining healthy heart rhythmn, balancing fluid levels, and for electric firing of the nerves for muscle contractions. I personally use Nu-Salt but you can use any form of salt alternative to get more potassium in your diet. It tastes very similar to table salt and makes it so you don’t need to go monkey mode and eat tons of bananas every day.
Where to find: Nu-Salt products, bananas, spinach, salmon, and yogurt.
Magnesium
Involved with numerous enzyme reactions in the body, magnesium is a critical mineral used for several bodily functions. It is the first mineral to troubleshoot when having issues with mood, anxiety, and any kind of stiffness and cramping. Nearly everyone is deficient in it as it’s prevalence in diets has all but vanished. A person who supposedly eats nothing but dark chocolate, avocados, and pumpkin seeds, you are very likely deficient in magnesium. Good forms of magnesium to take are magnesium citrate, L-threonate, and magnesium glycinate. Don’t bother with magnesium oxide if you see it. It’s absorption rate compared to others listed here is very small and should be avoided unless it’s the only option you have.
Where to find: Dark chocolate (70% or higher), Avocado, pumpkin seeds, and almonds.
Chloride
Usually found paired with sodium in the form of table salt, chloride is another salt found in many bottled waters and foods. It is used for making stomach acid, fluid balance, and healthy kidneys. You really don’t need to stress about extra supplementation for chloride as it’s generally prevalent enough from regular foods.
Where to find: Table salt, olives, tomatoes, lettuce, and rye bread.
How electrolytes Help you Lose Weight
The most important thing to remember with electrolytes beyond that they help with exercise performance and ensure you don’t die during a fast is that minerals like sodium and potassium are helpful for lowering appetite. Hunger and satiety signals of the body are influenced by electrolytes and imbalances of them can cause cravings. The most typical mineral usually causing this is a lack of potassium which is why I encourage people I meet to have a potassium chloride salt shaker at the table in addition to regular pink salt. If there’s only one thing you take away from this post let it be this:
GET MORE POTASSIUM AND MAGNESIUM
Every other electrolyte you’re probably doing fine with since they’re so common people trip over them. Some may notice that I left out calcium as an electrolyte, and this is because calcium is an antagonist for magnesium and another extremely common mineral that doesn’t really need supplementation. Most people in the world would do well to just crank magnesium intake for several decades to begin working on offsetting the imbalance of calcium to magnesium within their body.
From now on whenever anyone tries to dazzle you with an advertising caption about how something is “rich in electrolytes” just remember, most of them are extremely common, and the only two you should think about supplementation are potassium and magnesium.
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-Ed