how much water should one really drink in a day? Every source recommends a different amount. How do the electrolytes work?
In: Biology
Electrolytes are just a fancy way of saying salt, and other minerals dissolved in water. Pure water doesn’t conduct electricity very well. Once you put salt in it, it conducts electricity much better. One part of your body that relies on this very heavily is your nerves. Nerves work by sending little electrical signals all over your body, and if you don’t have the right balance of electrolytes in your body, it can cause problems.
You sometimes hear about this in long distance runners. Your sweat has salt in it. If you sweat a bunch, then drink water, you are losing electrolytes in your sweat, but not replacing them in the water you’re drinking. If you run for a very long time, like a marathon, you can sweat enough to cause an electrolyte imbalance. That’s why sports drinks like Gatorade have salt in them, to replace the salt lost when sweating.
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