Your heart beats around the clock without any conscious effort on your part. Its perpetual rhythm is maintained by electrical impulses that are greatly dependent on minerals that you ingest in your diet, known as electrolytes. Potassium and chloride are two important electrolyte minerals essential to nerve, muscle and heart function.
Electrolytes and Cardiac Function
Electrolytes are minerals containing positively charged ions that conduct electricity. All higher forms of life rely on electrolytes for survival. Electrolytes control muscle and nerve function, regulate hydration, regulate blood pressure, balance blood pH, and facilitate the rebuilding of damaged tissue. Your heart muscle relies on sodium, potassium and calcium to maintain its voltage of electrical impulses that enable it to pump blood to cells throughout your body. Your electrolyte levels are regulated by your kidneys in response to your level of hydration.
About Potassium
In order for your body to function, potassium concentrations must be regulated inside and outside of cells. The concentration of potassium is about 30 times higher inside cells than outside, the opposite of sodium, which is more concentrated in extracellular fluid. A constant balance of sodium and potassium in body fluids is vital to the cells' membrane potential that enables electrical conduction for nerve impulses, cardiac rhythms and muscle contraction. Severe potassium depletion can cause fatally abnormal heart rhythms.
About Chloride
Chloride is an electrolyte essential to the balance of body fluids, and it also plays an important role in digestion. Chloride is commonly found, along with potassium, in many foods, including fruits and vegetables. It is abundant in table and sea salt in the form of sodium chloride. Too much chloride can elevate blood pressure and cause fluid retention. Like other electrolytes, chloride becomes depleted with excessive sweating, vomiting and diarrhea. A deficiency of chloride will lead to potassium deficiency, and vice versa. Because the two are interdependent, they are often administered together to treat electrolyte depletion.
Imbalances and Sources
While the electrolyte minerals play vital roles in cardiac, nerve and muscle function, they are considered micronutrients and are only needed in very small amounts at any given time. Electrolyte imbalances can occur due to hot temperatures, profuse sweating, severe dehydration, vomiting, diarrhea, drug reactions and cancer treatments. After intense exercise, water alone is not enough to rehydrate your body. Many sports drinks contain electrolytes to help restore balance after vigorous physical activity. Eating a diet rich in fresh whole fruits and vegetables will help maintain necessary levels of potassium and chloride for optimal heart function.
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