There are a number of drinks advertised as being high in electrolytes, as though this is an important factor with regard to maintaining health. Although you need electrolytes in order to maintain cellular function, most people don't need to supplement with them, and electrolytes are not rare in foods and beverages.
Electrolytes
Electrolytes are nothing more than a fancy name for salts. A salt, explains Dr. Martin Silberberg in his book "Chemistry: The Molecular Nature of Matter and Change," is a compound made up of charged particles. At least one particle has a positive charge, and at least one has a negative charge. The particles are attracted to one another through their unlike charges. Table salt -- NaCl -- is one example of a salt and therefore of an electrolyte.
Electrolyte Needs
Your cells need electrolytes for a number of different functions. You need sodium and chloride, the components of table salt, to help you maintain fluid balance. Potassium also helps with this. There are many other electrolytes as well, but these three are those most commonly found -- and those found in greatest abundance -- in electrolyte beverages. Most people, however, don't have deficiencies in sodium, chloride or potassium, so such beverages aren't generally necessary.
Beverage Examples
Because electrolytes are nothing more than salts and because salts are common in nature, many beverages contain natural or added electrolytes. Most "energy" drinks contain them, for instance. Fruit juices also contain electrolytes, as does the increasingly popular beverage, coconut water. Even most tap water contains electrolytes, but not in concentrations sufficient to make a difference to your cells. Sports drinks, because they're specifically formulated to be high in electrolytes, have the highest concentrations of any beverage marketed to adults.
Considerations
There are two groups of people who need to be particularly aware of electrolytes in beverages. If you're an elite athlete and sweat copiously during arduous workouts, you can become very electrolyte-deficient if you quench your thirst with water. Athletes often need electrolyte replacement. If you have high blood pressure, on the other hand, you may need to avoid sodium -- the most common electrolyte in commercial beverages -- as it increases your blood pressure.
References
- American Heart Association: Salt
- "Chemistry: The Molecular Nature of Matter and Change"; Martin Silberberg, Ph.D.; 2008
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