Poultry, in addition to providing your diet with high-quality protein, contributes several minerals that serve as electrolytes. These electrically charged atoms are critical in maintaining the balance of several systems in your body to keep your physiological processes working smoothly. Because you lose electrolytes in your sweat, you must replace them on a daily basis through the foods and beverages you consume. The electrolytes in poultry can help you replenish these vital nutrients.
Background
Electrolytes include atoms that can exist in a charged, or ionized, state in your body, such as calcium, chloride, magnesium, potassium and sodium. They each serve specific functions, but their purpose as a whole is to maintain fluid balance in your body, keep your blood at the correct pH or acidity level, ensure proper nerve and muscle function and regulate the transport of biological molecules across your cell membranes. Different electrolytes work together in support of these activities, and sodium, potassium and calcium – found in varying levels in poultry – are three particularly important electrolytes.
Sodium
Sodium is the principal positively charged electrolyte in the extracellular fluid, or the fluid on the outside of your cells, with a concentration about 10 times higher outside than inside. It works in concert with potassium, the predominant positively charged electrolyte within your cells, to regulate movement of molecules in and out of the cell. In addition, its high concentration outside of your cells, and within your blood plasma, helps determine both your blood volume and blood pressure. While you require 1,500 milligrams of sodium in your diet each day, excess intake – common in Western diets – can cause health issues related to blood pressure. A 100-gram serving of poultry contains only 40 milligrams of sodium and can help you keep your sodium intake at a healthy level.
Potassium
The levels of potassium, another positively charged electrolyte, are 30 or so times higher on the inside of cells compared to the outside. Because sodium ions on the outside of your cells are only 10 times as concentrated as the amount of sodium on the inside, a greater positive charge exists inside the cell – due to potassium – than outside the cell – due to sodium. This so-called membrane potential, caused by the positive charge differential, allows the electrical gradient to carry molecules from one side of the cell membrane to the other. It is also a critical component of muscle contraction and nerve transmission. A portion of poultry weighing 100 grams provides more than 100 milligrams of potassium to help meet your daily requirement of 5,100 milligrams.
Calcium
Although most of your calcium resides in your bones, a small but crucial percentage exists in your extracellular fluid. This positively charged electrolyte helps contract your muscles, dilate and constrict your blood vessels, transmit nerve impulses and secrete hormones. Your bones serve as a reserve for the electrolyte when your dietary calcium is low. The 187 milligrams of calcium in 100 grams of poultry provides nearly 20 percent of your recommended daily intake for this mineral.
References
- MedlinePlus; Electrolytes; August 2009
- U.S. Department of Agriculture: National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference
- Oregon State University Linus Pauling Institute; Sodium (Chloride); November 2008
- Oregon State University Linus Pauling Institute; Potassium; December 2010
- Oregon State University Linus Pauling Institute; Calcium; October 2007
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