Dehydrated Divas: We’re Finally Explaining What An Electrolyte Is, So Pls Pay Attention
Electrolytes have been on the tip of people’s tongues for a hot minute now.
The market for flavoured water, packed with extra hydration, seems to have run riot over the past couple of years. The industry has advanced exponentially, with the Australian Electrolyte Supplement Market projected to grow by almost $60 million USD by 2032.
So, what the heck are these electrolytes? Are they the hydration master that we’ve been hearing about or just the latest fitness fad coming to knock protein off its pedestal?
What are electrolytes?
Well, if you ask the internet’s favourite fact finder, Hank Green, Electrolytes are just “a fancy word for ions”.
Electrolytes are minerals found in your body that provide a positive or negative electric charge when they are dissolved in a fluid.
The main electrolytes in your body are sodium, potassium, chloride, calcium, magnesium, phosphate, and bicarbonate. If you think about how salty your sweat or your tears are, that’s the sodium in your body.
To put it into layman’s terms, they’re the essential minerals that help your body to function.
How do electrolytes work in your body?
They’ve got their fingers in a lot of pies, let me tell you.
Electrolytes play a role in a lot of bodily functions, including in your brain’s communication with cells in your body, proper muscle contraction and relaxation, maintaining fluid balance in your cells, and regulating your internal PH levels.
And if you were to lose electrolytes, say if you’re an athlete sweating a lot, or you’ve simply been losing more water than you’ve been putting in, this could cause dehydration and an electrolyte imbalance, which is something you want to avoid.
What’s crazy is that, despite all we know about hydration and water consumption — we’re made up of a majority of water, and as such we need to drink lots of water to stay healthy — somehow only 35 per cent of Aussies* are meeting the recommended intake of water daily.
This is where electrolyte drinks and products come in.
Electrolyte products
Head into any chemist or supermarket, and you’re bound to see electrolyte products, like drinks or powders and tablets you add to water, that provide some of those key minerals.
Take the electrolyte drink mix Liquid I.V., for example. Liquid I.V. uses a science-backed formula with an optimal ratio of electrolytes, essential vitamins and nutrients to rapidly rehydrate your body**.
Products like this can rapidly replenish your electrolytes and, though they may seem like a modern invention, they’ve actually been around for almost a century.
The first electrolyte drink was made in 1927, before gaining widespread popularity across the ‘60s and ’70s. Now, the electrolyte industry is positively booming, as people are beginning to take note of how hydrated — or dehydrated — they’re feeling day-to-day.
When do you need to take electrolytes?
If I know one thing for certain, you people are thirsty (in more ways than one).
It’s easy to lose electrolytes, especially due to hot weather, travel or an active lifestyle with lots of exercise. For any of you who are out there running marathons or soaking up the sunshine this summer, replenishing electrolytes can help keep you hydrated.
According to Liquid I.V., dehydration doesn’t just cause headaches, fatigue and irritability; it can keep you from living life to the fullest.
That’s why they’re encouraging us to live more by giving away $100,000 worth of prizes and experiences (including an international festival vacay). All you need to do is enter the barcode from your Liquid I.V. stick on their website by March 28, and you’re in with a chance to win***.
So do you need to be worrying about electrolytes? Well, it depends on who you are and how your body works. But if you want to be a health-conscious queen, then hydration is a great place to start.
*According to an online survey of 2,000 nationally Australians fielded by Prodege on behalf of Liquid I.V. 3rd March 2024.
**ALWAYS READ THE LABEL AND FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS FOR USE.
***T&C’s apply.
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