The Long Haul: Hydration & Electrolytes
Welcome to The Long Haul! Every week, I’ll explore a longevity topic and then give a roundup of the big news in longevity. Because of the incredible heatwave we’ve been in, I wanted to talk about hydration. (Were you forwarded this email? Please subscribe here.) Today's Topic: Hydration & ElectrolytesEveryone knows staying hydrated is important, but lately, there’s a ton of hype around electrolytes. I’m a fan of electrolytes but understanding their use case can help to make them more effective. How important is hydration Before 2023, there wasn’t any research that linked hydration to longevity. Last year, a 25-year, 11,000-person study showed that adults with higher levels of serum sodium ranges show signs of advanced biological aging. Basically, if there’s a high concentration of salt in your body (which is counteracted by staying hydrated) you’re more likely to develop chronic conditions and are 50% more likely to be biologically older than your actual age. [1] Staying hydrated helps with several bodily functions:
What's the right amount of water? Men are supposed to drink 13 cups of water/day (3 liters), and women should drink 9 cups of water/day (2 liters). [2] There is such a thing as drinking too much water. But only 14 people have ever died from being overhydrated and ~10,000 people in the US die from dehydration annually, so let's focus on hydration. [3] If you’re really worried about overhydration, just don’t drink more than 1L of fluids/hour. Most drinks will serve as hydration, including sugary and caffeinated drinks as they always contain water. Thankfully, it's a myth that coffee is dehydrating. Despite coffee being a diuretic, we only become dehydrated by coffee after consuming over 500mg of caffeine daily (1 cup of coffee is ~95mg). [4] Do we need to supplement electrolytes? Everyone and their mother (including mine) love electrolytes now. And for a valid reason, they’re essential in the body. Many of the body’s automatic functions, like the heartbeat, are powered by electric currents and electrolytes provide the electrical charge for these functions. [5] Electrolytes are just minerals like sodium, potassium, and calcium. Oddly enough, too much salt is dehydrating but some salt is essential to rehydrate. The average person gets all the electrolytes they need through a regular nutritious diet but electrolytes can be lost through:
So things like dehydration, strenuous exercise, or a good night out can impact your electrolyte balance. Some signs of low electrolyte balance include:
Electrolyte supplementation is shown to do a great job of rehydration and I'm a huge fan. But, if you’re going to use electrolytes make sure the product or brand you choose is low in sugars and contains the minerals needed to support rehydration. The Haul: What you can’t miss in longevity this weekResearch
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Thanks for reading. – Robyn [1] https://www.thelancet.com/journals/ebiom/article/PIIS2352-3964(22)00586-2/fulltext [3] https://health.clevelandclinic.org/what-urine-color-means [4] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5563313/ [5] https://www.uclahealth.org/news/article/diet-hydration-best-way-get-electrolytes [6] https://www.cedars-sinai.org/blog/electrolytes.html |
