Home made electrolytes replacement (Page 2 of 2)
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Originally Posted By stonedv8: Good info, But in all reality wouldnt it be easier to just stock a few large cans of powdered Gatorade, unopened they should last a LONG time. And they contain a whole lot more items your body could use too. Plus it tastes good. This is what I do. |
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Originally Posted By Jkcoon: Ultimately electrolyte are just salts in small quantities and almost any edible chloride will act as an electrolyte Sure, ultimately, you're right. Except that's not how the human body works. When we talk about electrolytes for humans, we're talking about the chemicals needed to sustain proper hydration, of which electrolytes are but a small, but vital, portion of the solution. Just adding salt won't always work. |
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Originally Posted By ColonelHurtz: I make this without the sugar, usually adding sacharin tabs instead. While you are mixing it up add unsweetened Kool-Aid to flavor it. Makes it much more palatable and also more appealing to children. You'll also be able to tell the solution from regular water at a glance. That doesn't work the same way, water will be absorbed much slower. There is a transport molecule that needs the salt AND the sugar to move water from your gut and into your blood stream. https://www.precisionhydration.com/performance-advice/hydration/why-theres-some-sugar-in-the-new-precision-hydration-electrolyte-range/ "we have included some sugar in the new formulation is to increase the absorption rate of the drink from the gut into the blood stream" |
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Originally Posted By C-4: One glucose molecule is absorbed with two sodium ions across the intestinal epithelium. That's just the way glucose is absorbed. Not all monosaccharides are absorbed that way but this is why you are using both glucose and salt in water. If you google 'monosaccharide absorption with sodium' you'll find some additional information.  Originally Posted By C-4: Originally Posted By Duggan: Interesting. Why is there salt in this? Doesn't salt normally dry things out ... or is that the idea, having salt in your body somehow keeps water inside you by pulling it in? I don't get it ... off to google. One glucose molecule is absorbed with two sodium ions across the intestinal epithelium. That's just the way glucose is absorbed. Not all monosaccharides are absorbed that way but this is why you are using both glucose and salt in water. If you google 'monosaccharide absorption with sodium' you'll find some additional information. Also, sucrose is one fructose molecule and one glucose molecule, so using table sugar is far from ideal. That's also why "gatoraid" is bullshit. The original "gatoraid" was made with dextrose (which is two glucose molecules). |
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The first 3 weeks of June, I was out in the stupid heat and humidity of the RGV of Texas doing drone flights. I ended up getting heat edema the first week. On the third week, I'd been drinking water and Gatorade like mad but right after lunch I started feeling nauseous. I figured it was due to dehydration. So, I happened to have some generic Pedialyte from the local grocery chain. Chugged a bunch of that down. It was like drinking pancake syrup. It was disgusting but less than an hour later, I felt fine. Funny, one of my co-workers saw me drinking that and asked if he could put some in his water bottle. His bottle was about half full and I filled the rest up with the Pedialyte. About 5 minutes later he came by and asked if it was weird that his headache was gone after drinking the mix. Evidently he'd had a headache all morning and drinking water wasn't helping. Heat and humidity can cause problems. One of the days we were flying it was 96degF and 116 heat index. It sucked. It was so humid that when you'd sweat, water from the air would attach to it and make you wetter. I was wearing moisture wicking fishing shirts but had to wear cotton-poly pants. My pants weighed about 5 lbs more on the way home than they did on the way in. |
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OK, I'll pipe in. One of the stupidest most harmful things we do that's "One size fits all" is this no sodium crap. In fact, before all this one size fits all BS, we carried salt tablets in the Army to help ward off heat stroke. We probably would have lost twice as many soldiers during the Vietnam war to heat stroke then bullets had we not. The fact is sodium is necessary in our diets and this idea we'll get enough salt from our normal diet is one size fits all thinking because it does not take conditions or what diet into consideration. I'll give you an example. I ride motorcycles every summer and since I retire, I'm riding so much I burn a set of tires off my Harley every season and I get 14,000 miles a set of tires. Due to a health issues, I get blood work twice a year. Summer, this time of year, my sodium level is always below normal and I use a salt shaker every damn meal. The other day after three days on the bike, man, I almost passed out. Man there's a big difference between sitting at a desk in air conditioning and being in the field all day. If you ever wonder where the salt goes, taste your sweat sometime. It has more salt taste than salt pork. I always wonder how people can go through life without tasting their own salt. Anyway, your body normally regulates the salt level in your system. Yes, salt will cause you to retain fluids but then if you don't have a heart condition, then salts not bad for you. Its even good for you. In fact, farmers for decades use to keep salt blocks in the field so cattle would avoid heat exhaustion and retain weight in summer. Now all this said, me telling you "Eat Salt" in its self is a "one size fits all" just as "Drink Electrolyte Juice" is. The best survival tool is to know your body. Ask your doctor for your lab results. My doctor gives me a print out which besides his recommendation notes had each lab result and what normal levels are. There's way more there than your electrolytes. You'll start to get the hang of your normal white blood count all sorts of things. Now that, of course, is a moving target. What's not a big deal at 19 will be at 69 so its an on going endeavor. Just keep in mind, doctors have many patients but you only have one. You'll find yourself tracking urine outputs both how much and what color and reacting accordingly. Sometimes, you are going to need a bit more than a Gatoraid. Unfortunately how much we sweat is not always and indicator. Dry climates your sweat evaporates faster and we climates you get a false positive because it doesn't. Get use to one area, go to another, you get screwed up. I still have problems going to Colorado in summer. I have to force myself to drink because use to high humidity and lower altitudes, my usual indicators don't work except for urine output. Hot enough, even that may be a day late and a dollar short. Outside enough, you will start to learn by how you feel. A few years back, a close friend of mine died of heat exhaustion. A window installer by trade, he took a roofing job for extra money. It just so happened the weekend he worked it was very rare weather conditions here, over 100 and almost no humility. All of his indicators were off and this was a guy who worked outside for a living. 45 years old and fit as a horse, day 3 he died. He refused to go to the hospital and by the time his fever spiked, it was too late. He thought he could make it till morning, instead he died in his recliner that night. This guy was fit as hell too, muscles everywhere. Get a handle on this. Your life can depend on it. Avoid the "one size fits all" and do what's right for then. Tj |
"We prepare so we don't have to go to the Superdome!"
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Originally Posted By TomJefferson: OK, I'll pipe in. One of the stupidest most harmful things we do that's "One size fits all" is this no sodium crap. In fact, before all this one size fits all BS, we carried salt tablets in the Army to help ward off heat stroke. We probably would have lost twice as many soldiers during the Vietnam war to heat stroke then bullets had we not. The fact is sodium is necessary in our diets and this idea we'll get enough salt from our normal diet is one size fits all thinking because it does not take conditions or what diet into consideration. I'll give you an example. I ride motorcycles every summer and since I retire, I'm riding so much I burn a set of tires off my Harley every season and I get 14,000 miles a set of tires. Due to a health issues, I get blood work twice a year. Summer, this time of year, my sodium level is always below normal and I use a salt shaker every damn meal. The other day after three days on the bike, man, I almost passed out. Man there's a big difference between sitting at a desk in air conditioning and being in the field all day. If you ever wonder where the salt goes, taste your sweat sometime. It has more salt taste than salt pork. I always wonder how people can go through life without tasting their own salt. Anyway, your body normally regulates the salt level in your system. Yes, salt will cause you to retain fluids but then if you don't have a heart condition, then salts not bad for you. Its even good for you. In fact, farmers for decades use to keep salt blocks in the field so cattle would avoid heat exhaustion and retain weight in summer. Now all this said, me telling you "Eat Salt" in its self is a "one size fits all" just as "Drink Electrolyte Juice" is. The best survival tool is to know your body. Ask your doctor for your lab results. My doctor gives me a print out which besides his recommendation notes had each lab result and what normal levels are. There's way more there than your electrolytes. You'll start to get the hang of your normal white blood count all sorts of things. Now that, of course, is a moving target. What's not a big deal at 19 will be at 69 so its an on going endeavor. Just keep in mind, doctors have many patients but you only have one. You'll find yourself tracking urine outputs both how much and what color and reacting accordingly. Sometimes, you are going to need a bit more than a Gatoraid. Unfortunately how much we sweat is not always and indicator. Dry climates your sweat evaporates faster and we climates you get a false positive because it doesn't. Get use to one area, go to another, you get screwed up. I still have problems going to Colorado in summer. I have to force myself to drink because use to high humidity and lower altitudes, my usual indicators don't work except for urine output. Hot enough, even that may be a day late and a dollar short. Outside enough, you will start to learn by how you feel. A few years back, a close friend of mine died of heat exhaustion. A window installer by trade, he took a roofing job for extra money. It just so happened the weekend he worked it was very rare weather conditions here, over 100 and almost no humility. All of his indicators were off and this was a guy who worked outside for a living. 45 years old and fit as a horse, day 3 he died. He refused to go to the hospital and by the time his fever spiked, it was too late. He thought he could make it till morning, instead he died in his recliner that night. This guy was fit as hell too, muscles everywhere. Get a handle on this. Your life can depend on it. Avoid the "one size fits all" and do what's right for then. Tj It isn't just low salt, salt is fortified with iodine because people need iodine and don't get enough from processed food and no seafood. There has been a rise of hypothyroid conditions due to people cutting way back on idodized salt. |
Mach
Nobody is coming to save us.
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Nobody is coming to save us.
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Originally Posted By TomJefferson: A few years back, a close friend of mine died of heat exhaustion. A window installer by trade, he took a roofing job for extra money. It just so happened the weekend he worked it was very rare weather conditions here, over 100 and almost no humility. All of his indicators were off and this was a guy who worked outside for a living. 45 years old and fit as a horse, day 3 he died. He refused to go to the hospital and by the time his fever spiked, it was too late. He thought he could make it till morning, instead he died in his recliner that night. This guy was fit as hell too, muscles everywhere. Tough guy syndrome can kill you, and did him 
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I'm not adequately aluminumized for this thread. - gonzo_beyondo
CO, FL, MI, SC, OR - Please lobby your legislators to end discrimination against non-resident CCW permit holders
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Here's a PDF from the American Civil Defense Association showing how to make various levels of Oral Rehydration Solutions similar to the Oral Rehydration Packets sold for medical use. It shows how to make essentially the same solution from common grocery store items like salt, Morton's Lite Salt (100 percent potassium), sugar (or corn syrup). It also shows how to make "sports drink" type formulas (like Gatorade) when used for more routine use (not severe dehydration). http://www.jumpjet.info/Emergency-Preparedness/Neighborly-Response/Personal/First_Aid/Body_Rehydration.pdf Full-Auto |
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I once had a G/F, on a hot day, grow faint and wobbly. No other cause than the Heat. Scored some Salt from nearby restaurant and told her to lick it up, with some water. She initially protested but did as I asked. She immediately said that the Salt tasted Sooo good. She was "fixed" in a couple of minutes. |
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If there's a thread to keep alive in the Survival Forum, this is it. example: https://www.ar15.com/forums/t_1_5/2733577_Well-that-was-scary-wife-extremely-dehydrated.html |
This is...a clue - Pat_Rogers
I'm not adequately aluminumized for this thread. - gonzo_beyondo
CO, MI, OR - Please lobby your legislators to end discrimination against non-resident CCW permit holders
I'm not adequately aluminumized for this thread. - gonzo_beyondo
CO, MI, OR - Please lobby your legislators to end discrimination against non-resident CCW permit holders
I was working outside doing flight testing and really started having issues even though I was drinking water and occasionally Gatorade. I felt like crap and went by a store and picked up some Pedialyte. Figured if it helps kids that are sick not get dehydrated, it should work for me. Worked like a champ. One of my co-workers asked about it the next day. I poured some into his half-empty water bottle. He came back a half hour later and said his headache was completely gone. My only issue is it's like drinking pancake syrup.  But it definitely works wonders.
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| When I was a kid I was in marching band (early 70's). We had black wool uniforms. Before every parade they made everyone take two salt tablets. We went down to Dallas to march in the VFW parade. It was around 100 degrees. We were the only band that didn't lose someone due to heat. |
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This discussion, and the linked one, prompted me to order up some Liquid IV to try out. I've used Pedialyte with good results, but I wanted to try something else. I got the Liquid IV on sale (30% off for July 4th), so its basically $1.10 for 16 oz, $2.20 for 32 oz. Compared with Pedialyte @$5.44 from Walmart, a bargain. I do have the ingredients to make homemade electrolyte drink (lite salt with potassium, sugar), so I may give that a go too. Good to have options. Thanks for nudging me into action guys.
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https://science.drinklmnt.com/electrolytes/best-homemade-electrolyte-drink-for-dehydration I got magnesium malate from Amazon and made a batch of this. With a packet of lemonade it tastes very much like classic Gatorade to me. |
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I’ve found that this stuff has LMNT’s ingredients and proportions, in a far more affordable option than LMNT. I know I can make it from components off Amazon, but I didn’t feel like making and storing 1000 doses at a time…  
Double their dose and it matches LMNT’s single packets. |
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My go to is LMNT. It’s stashed in every bag and kit I have and I even keep a few pockets in my desk drawer at work. There are times I will realise I am dehydrated due to me forgetting to drink enough water and several days of poor nutrition. (Usually because I’m on a job deadline) I’ll add some to a liter of water and within an hour or two I feel a lot better. I have tried probably a dozed different hydration supplements and LMNT is my go to along with original Gatorade. One thing is with Gatorade is that it needs to be cut with water which makes its taste weak. So when downing a bottle of Gatorade I will alternate with sips of the same amount of water. When I was a college coach I pushed this method on the team and they said they felt better than in HS when the coaches gave them whatever “aide” straight. One thing I and others in my circle have found with LMNT is that everyone has a different “tolerance” for it . A good example is my friend J. He can dump a packet in a quart of water or even less and thinks it tastes great. At that concentration it tastes bad to me and I have to force it down. If I put about 1/3rd of a packet in a quart it tasted great. So something to think about for groups. |
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This is a great thread for everyone to be aware of. I had an episode about 2 years ago, which I'll describe, and there have been 2 people in my work group that had similar issues over the last few years. For me, I was very low on electrolytes at the end of a long weekend working in the heat. I had plenty of water, but my overall diet was not providing enough sodium and potassium. Hours of working in the sun, and having a few beers in the afternoon was not the way to stay hydrated. I woke up in the middle of the night with severe cramps in my legs. Early the next morning I called a friend who was a nurse, and was advised to immediately boost up my electrolytes, and particularly potassium in my case, and go to an emergency care center nearby if I still felt issues. I went to a doctor in the morning and they confirmed very low levels of electrolytes. They offered me an IV or oral tablets, but since I was not critical, I took the tablets and stayed there a while till I was stabilized. Given this lesson, I told my coworkers what happened to be aware of these symptoms. We have weekly safety meetings at my job, so I told my whole team what happened and how it felt. What I experienced genuinely scared me, and I told my team every detail. Over the last 2 years, 2 of my coworkers wound up with similar issues and they quickly took the right steps to respond. They were both very grateful, and both later told me that they did not believe it could happen to them. They both said things to the effect of "I could not believe it, but I was going through just what you described..." I was very glad to have helped them by telling my story earlier. I learned from the recent posts in this thread: you also need glucose to help absorb electrolytes. I did not know this and thought that sugar was unnecessary, but it is. So whether you buy a commercial supplement, or make your own, it's important to keep in mind the various salts and even sugars you need to absorb electrolytes. Just don't add too much sugar and become diabetic! Some people may not need supplements at all, given their diet, activity and environment. But everyone should keep these symptoms in mind, and prep accordingly. |