Drinking water should be a vital part of your daily routine. Our bodies are 60% water and we can easily lose water content. Staying properly hydrated can help improve cardiovascular health, prevent dry mouth, help to cleanse your body, and can improve the function of your joints.
Our bodies need to stay hydrated to work properly. As little as a 2% loss of water will cause physically noticeable symptoms. Loss of bodily water content can lead to reduced motivation, fatigue, and even mental fog. Studies have shown, staying hydrated can lead to fewer headaches or migraines. Drinking plenty of water has also been shown to improve your digestive system and kidney function. Drinking water prior to and during mealtimes, especially cold water, can lead to weight loss as it will curve hunger and your body will burn calories to heat cold water when it is ingested.
Drinking water can be more beneficial when it is enhanced with electrolytes. Electrolytes are a critical element to help our bodies control fluid balance. They help to maintain correct pH levels in the blood and regulate blood pressure. Electrolytes can also help muscles to contract. Replenishing electrolytes after physical activity is especially important but it is something you should consider making part of your daily routine.
Many sports drinks are enhanced with electrolytes and advertise to improve your performance. However, you need to be careful as some of them also contain large amounts of sugar. The most common electrolytes our bodies have, and need are sodium, phosphate, chloride, bicarbonate, potassium, magnesium, and calcium.
An imbalance of electrolytes can be caused by many medical conditions and dehydration. A few of those causes are renal failure, congestive heart failure, bulimia, and cancer treatments. Other factors that can lead to electrolyte imbalance include age, poor diet, and prolonged periods of vomiting or diarrhea. Electrolyte imbalances lead to many physical and mental symptoms. Those can include but are not limited to, severe fatigue, twitching, seizures, disturbances in cardiac rhythm, muscle spasms, confusion, bone disorders, and weakness to name a few. Imbalance of any one electrolyte in the body can cause more symptoms than those listed above. Besides drinking enhanced water, fruits and vegetables are a good natural source of electrolytes. It is important to remember to stay hydrated, and by adding electrolytes you can positively impact your health and well-being.
Here is a recipe to make your own electrolyte enhances sports drink. Check out below that, for a list that will identify other food and beverage options to replenish electrolytes.
Lemon-lime sports drink:
1/4 tsp of salt
1/3 cup of lemon juice
1/3 cup of lime juice
1 1/4 cups of unsweetened coconut water
2 cups of cold water
Sodium dill pickle tomato juices, sauces, and soups table salt
Chloride tomato juices, sauces, and soups lettuce olives table salt
Potassium potatoes with skin plain yogurt banana
Magnesium halibut pumpkin seeds spinach
Calcium yogurt milk ricotta collard greens spinach kale sardines
Comments