Water vs. Electrolytes: When Plain Water Isn't Enough
For most of your day, water is exactly right. Here is when adding electrolytes makes a difference, and when it does not.
We make an electrolyte drink mix, and we will start by telling you that for most of your day you do not need one. Water is the right drink for ordinary hydration. The interesting question is what changes when you sweat.
How your body decides to keep a drink
After you drink, your kidneys adjust urine output to keep the body's water and sodium in balance. A drink that dilutes your blood, such as a large volume of plain water, tends to be followed by more urine. A drink with sodium, some energy, or protein tends to be followed by less.
What the beverage study found
In 2016, researchers gave 72 volunteers a liter of each of 13 different drinks on separate days and measured urine output over the following four hours. They scored each drink against still water on a beverage hydration index. An oral rehydration solution, which contains sodium, potassium, and glucose, came out ahead of water, as did full-fat and skim milk and orange juice. Volunteers held on to more of those drinks. Sodium, and in milk's case energy and protein, were the likely reasons. Most of the other drinks, including coffee, tea, and common sports drinks, were similar to water.
When electrolytes start to matter
The benefit is about replacement, not magic. If you are sitting at a desk, your diet covers your sodium. The case for adding electrolytes builds with how much you sweat: long training sessions, hot weather, heavy sweaters, or several hard days back to back. There is no universal threshold, and nothing here says that more is better.
Do not overdo it
Fluid balance is a range. Drinking far more than you lose, especially plain water, can dilute blood sodium. Thirst is a reliable guide for most people in most situations, and pale yellow urine is a rough everyday check.
Where Atlas fits
Atlas is meant for the situations in this article where sweat losses are high, with 600 mg of sodium, 500 mg of potassium, and 200 mg of magnesium per stick. For everyday sipping, water is still the right choice.
See the label and ingredientsSources
- Maughan RJ, et al. A randomized trial to assess the potential of different beverages to affect hydration status: development of a beverage hydration index. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2016;103(3):717-723.
- Hew-Butler T, et al. Statement of the Third International Exercise-Associated Hyponatremia Consensus Development Conference, Carlsbad, California, 2015. Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine. 2015;25(4):303-320.
This article is for general education and is not medical advice. Talk with your clinician about your own needs. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. Atlas Hydration is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.