RHTR | Warrior Wound Care

ELECTROLYTES

Endurance will be compromised if hydration worsens. Heart rate increases and oxygen—as well as nutrient delivery to the muscles —can drop 10 percent even with mild exercise like hiking. When unreplaced water losses equal 2 percent of body weight, it will impact heat regulation. At 3 percent loss there is a decrease in muscle cell contraction time and at a 4 percent loss there is a 5-10 percent drop in overall performance, which can last up to four hours.

Lost with this fluid are electrolytes and essential minerals. Mineral replacement is essential to helping restore proper blood volume and blood sugar levels and is necessary for enzymatic reactions that promote proper blood volume. Without them, the quality of performance during long-term or explosive short-term exercise decreases.

Formulations with too many trace minerals in combination can actually prevent electrolyte formation because they can compete with one another for absorption. Too few trace minerals in a drink, on the other hand, are unable to form the proper electrolyte balance for the minerals to be able to enter the cell and maximize rehydration.

WHAT ARE ELECTROLYTES?

Electrolyte is a "medical/scientific" term for mineral salts, specifically ions. Electrolytes are the spark that keeps our bodies running. They are necessary for life. They are important because our cells (especially nerve, heart, and muscle) use them to maintain voltage across cell membranes and to carry electrical impulses (nerve impulses, muscle contractions) across to other cells.

These electro-chemicals influence the body's pH – a chemical balance that determines how effectively the biological systems run. When there is a deficiency of body electricity, body functions slow down and eventually stop. Micronutrients play an important role in energy production, hemoglobin synthesis and maintenance of bone health, adequate immune function and the protection of body tissues from oxidative damage. They are also required to help build and repair muscle tissue following exercise.

Electrolytes facilitate delivery of oxygen to achieve and maintain peak brain function and proper nervous system response. The constant firing of micro-electric impulses across the synapses of the brain requires a great deal of energy. Only electrolytes can supply this. If, because of an imbalance, there isn't enough oxygen available for the nerve cells to fire when needed, the brain functions less effectively. The body uses oxygen to turn nutrients into energy through the process of primary oxygenation. This simply means that electrolytes help the oxygen create a chemical reaction that ultimately allows the body to "burn" the nutrients as fuel. In a nutshell, bio-oxidation liberates energy – which facilitates life.