If you have been feeling dehydrated, want to boost your athletic performance, or even just need more energy, you might want to try electrolyte water. Electrolytes are minerals that contribute to many vital functions within your body including its hydration levels. From avoiding dehydration to having a healthy heart and clear skin, the benefits of electrolytes are practically endless.
Electrolyte water is bottled water that has been designed to have a higher number of electrolytes than normal water. These bottled waters can be much more hydrating and provide more health benefits than regular water thanks to the density of minerals that they contain. When you are aware of your electrolyte intake, you can find yourself feeling and performing better in all areas of your life.
However, understanding electrolytes and what they do for your body can be confusing. That’s why Bubble Sip has created this ultimate guide to electrolytes. In this ultimate guide, we will help you understand what electrolytes are, how they can make you feel better, who benefits the most from drinking electrolyte water, and how to find the best healthy water to drink. No more feeling tired, sluggish, or dehydrated thanks to electrolyte-infused water!
What are electrolytes?
Electrolytes are minerals that include sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, and chloride. When ingested, electrolytes create an electrical charge within your body (that’s why their name sounds similar to the word “electricity”). These minerals are key to providing you with hydration and also helping your body efficiently move waste in and out of your cells. They allow your organs to function as they should and to stay healthy. Because of this, ensuring that you have a proper amount of electrolytes in your body is crucial to maintaining your physical health.
Health Benefits of Drinking Electrolyte Water
The great thing about drinking electrolyte water regularly is that it offers a number of health benefits. This is because electrolytes contain minerals such as sodium, potassium, and magnesium that are important to several different bodily functions from hydration to your heart’s health.
Can you have an electrolyte deficiency?
Yes, you can have an electrolyte deficiency. An electrolyte deficiency is better known as an electrolyte imbalance. Electrolyte imbalances occur when the amount of electrolytes within your body is either too low or too high. These imbalances have several unpleasant symptoms that can make you feel horrible. These symptoms include confusion, diarrhea, constipation, headaches, fatigue, irritability, fast heart rate, and muscle cramps. The good news is that you can help prevent electrolyte imbalances by practicing proper hydration to maintain your body’s level of electrolytes.
Increased Hydration
Electrolytes are necessary for proper hydration, because they are what allow your body to absorb water. Without electrolytes, your cells and organs wouldn’t be able to have water pass through them, and your body wouldn’t be able to send water to the organs that need it most. Because of this, electrolytes are not only important for hydration, but are in fact absolutely essential for it.
Elevated Athletic Performance
Have you ever tried to work out or play sports when you were already dehydrated? You probably felt sluggish and not at your best. That’s because being dehydrated can negatively affect your performance. Proper hydration is essential to being at the top of your game since being dehydrated can negatively affect your performance. Not to mention that working out when dehydrated is dangerous and harmful to your physical health. Athletes who know that the best healthy bottled water to drink has electrolytes can find themselves with better balance, improved neural activity, and better muscle contraction thanks to the benefits of proper hydration.
Boosted Energy
Dehydration and an electrolyte imbalance can both cause fatigue. In fact, many people wander around wondering why they are so tired when the answer is simply that they are dehydrated. Without the proper levels of electrolytes in your body, you can’t produce the right amount of energy that you need to feel your best.
Healthier Heart
The minerals that make up electrolytes include potassium, calcium, and magnesium, all of which are necessary for a healthy heart. These minerals can help ensure that your heart is functioning at its best and is beating regularly, as well as assisting in maintaining blood pressure. Plus, because hydration is essential for every part of your body’s functions, the fluid boosts that water with electrolytes provides also help keep your heart strong.
Clear and Bright Skin
Your skin is your body’s largest organ, and it’s one of the first things that’s affected if you are dehydrated. Dehydrated skin loses its elasticity and can look dry, flaky, and dull. One of the best things you can do for your skin’s appearance and health is to drink electrolyte water to ensure that you are properly hydrated. That way, your skin will not only feel healthy, but it will look smooth, glowy, and beautiful.
Better Blood Pressure
If you have a potassium or sodium deficiency, you may find that your blood pressure is high. The good news is that water with electrolytes contains these minerals, which means that regularly drinking healthy bottled water infused with them can ultimately assist in lowering your blood pressure.
Who benefits the most from drinking electrolyte water?
While everyone can benefit from the best healthy bottled water to drink is electrolyte-infused water like XENI bottled water, some people benefit from water with electrolytes more than others. These people include those who are active, who have a higher risk for dehydration, who are sick, who are chronically ill, or those who live in hot temperatures.
Athletes
Athletes or people who work out often are constantly losing fluids as their bodies sweat to cool themselves down. This means that they have a greater risk of dehydration than those who don’t exercise regularly and lose fluids as often. Because electrolytes can not only hydrate you, but also improve muscle health and energy levels, athletes need to replenish their electrolyte levels often through healthy bottled water to ensure that they are hydrated, energized, and ready for their next workout.
Older Adults
Because of its ability to boost hydration levels, drinking electrolyte water is important for those who are at risk of dehydration. Aside from athletes, older adults are one group of people that are more likely to not be hydrated enough. This is because, as you age, your body’s reserve of fluid lessens, and your ability to conserve water weakens. Older adults also lose some of the cues that tell our bodies when we are thirsty like having a dry mouth. This means that seniors are less likely to know if they are dehydrated. Older adults who regularly drink water containing electrolytes can find themselves feeling healthier than those who do not since they will proactively be ensuring that they do not become dehydrated.
Those in Hot Temperatures
Whether you live somewhere hot or work outdoors, anyone who is regularly outside when it is warm knows how quickly you can lose fluids when the temperature is high. This is because you’ll find yourself sweating more when it is hot outside as that is your body’s natural way of cooling itself. In fact, if it is humid and hot outside, you are at an even greater risk of dehydration, because the humidity keeps the sweat on your skin from evaporating as quickly as it should, making you even hotter and in need of more fluids. You may not even realize that you are becoming dehydrated from the heat until it is too late, so make sure that you are drinking enough water and getting enough electrolytes to keep from feeling poorly.
Those Who Are Sick
Think about the last time you had the flu or a stomach bug. Maybe you had an upset stomach or you were sweating from a fever. These symptoms can cause you to lose a lot of your body’s fluids in a short period of time and can lead to dangerously low hydration levels if you’re not actively replenishing your fluid intake. Because electrolytes increase the speed at which your body can rehydrate, choosing electrolyte water when you are sick can help you feel better faster and keep you from feeling even worse from dehydration.
Those With Chronic Illnesses
One thing that many people don’t know is that some chronic illnesses can be a risk factor for low electrolyte levels and dehydration. For example, people with kidney failure may have difficulty balancing the levels of fluid within their bodies. Another illness that can lead to dehydration is celiac disease, due to the fact that it can lead to electrolyte imbalances within your body. Or, if you have something like ulcerative colitis that causes bathroom frequency, you may find yourself losing more fluids than you are taking in if you are not diligent about rehydrating quickly after a flare-up.
Are there other ways I can get electrolytes?
While finding the best healthy bottled water to drink is the easiest way to ensure that you are getting electrolytes, eating a diet full of foods rich in these minerals is another way you can ensure you are staying healthy. While some of these foods won’t necessarily increase your hydration levels, they can offer the other benefits that electrolytes provide depending on what kinds of minerals they contain.
Foods Rich in Sodium
Sodium is one of the minerals contained in electrolytes, and it helps your body to maintain hydration and improves muscle and nerve health. Some healthy food options that are rich in sodium are dairy products such as cheese and milk, white turkey meat, or sunflower seeds.
Food Rich in Potassium
Potassium is important for your heart, muscle, and nerve health. It is also necessary for the proper metabolization of carbohydrates as well as synthesizing protein. Some potassium-rich foods are bananas, avocados, potatoes, beans, spinach, broccoli, and dried fruits such as raisins.
Foods Rich in Calcium
Calcium is a mineral that helps your body’s muscles and nerves to stay strong and healthy. It’s also good for your blood vessels and ensures that the proper hormones are being released throughout your body. While many people associate calcium with dairy products like milk, cheese, and eggs, you can also get calcium from foods like chia or sesame seeds, sardines, salmon, beans, lentils, whey protein, and almonds.
Foods Rich in Magnesium
Like sodium, potassium, and calcium, magnesium is important for muscle and nerve health. It also helps your body create healthy bones, protein, and DNA as well as maintaining blood sugar levels and blood pressure. If you need more magnesium in your diet, try some healthy food options like chia seeds, almonds, rolled oats, avocado, spinach, rice, or milk.
Foods Rich in Phosphorus
If you want strong tissue and cells in your body, ensuring that you are getting enough phosphorus in your diet is crucial. Foods that are rich in phosphorus are chicken, turkey, organ meats, pork, dairy, and seafood such as carp, sardines, pollock, and salmon.
Foods Rich in Chloride
Chloride is a mineral that helps to ensure fluid can easily come and go from your body’s cells, your digestive system is working well, your nerves and muscles are strong, and you are producing the proper amount of carbon dioxide and oxygen within your body’s cells. If you are looking to up your chloride intake, try including more table salt or sea salt within your diet. Some foods that naturally contain chloride include seaweed or shrimp.
Where can I find the best healthy bottled water to drink with electrolytes?
If you are looking for healthy bottled water that contains electrolytes, Bubble Sip is here to help. Our water is not only full of electrolytes but is also the best water for pH balance. We designed it to help you stay hydrated, free of toxins, and full of energy. Order our XENI Gold or Silver water bottles to learn more about how good electrolyte water can make you feel today.
Electrolyte Water FAQs:
Does water have electrolytes?
Most kinds of water (except for water that has been purified in a laboratory like distilled water) contain electrolytes. However, electrolyte-infused water contains a much higher concentration of electrolytes than normal water does.
Can I drink electrolyte water every day?
If you are someone who is at a higher risk of dehydration like an athlete, older adult, or someone with an illness, it may be beneficial to drink electrolyte water regularly. This can help you replace the fluids you lose while helping prevent you from getting worse dehydration.
What is the best healthy bottled water to drink?
The best healthy bottled water to drink is Bubble Sip’s XENI Gold or Silver water bottles. Our water is full of electrolytes, pH balanced, and is created to keep you healthy and hydrated. Live your healthiest life with Bubble Sip.
