What are electrolytes?
An electrolyte imbalance can lead to a variety of unpleasant and even dangerous symptoms, such as dizziness, muscle cramps, fatigue, and anxiety. What are electrolytes? What are the common symptoms of electrolyte deficiency and what causes it?
Electrolytes are chemicals that we get from the foods and the fluids we consume. They are very important substances for a variety of essential functions in our body. Keeping our electrolyte levels in check is necessary for our health and well-being.
When electrolytes are dissolved in our body's fluids, they allow conducting electrical signals throughout the body to support the proper functioning of all systems and help regulate muscle contraction and heartbeat.
The role of electrolytes in the body
Potassium: normalizes blood pressure, supports nerve signaling, regulates heart activity, and normalizes muscle function and body balance.
Sodium: maintains the fluid balance in the body, responsible for muscle contractions and nerve signalling.
Magnesium: important for muscle movement and contraction, supports a healthy heart rate and the activity of the nervous system, helps build and strengthen the bones, reduces anxiety, supports digestion, and maintains the balance of protein-fluid in the body.
Calcium: helps with muscle contraction and relaxation, nerve signaling, blood clotting, and cell division, and supports healthy bones and strong teeth.
Chloride: maintains a proper fluid balance in the body, balances blood acidity (PH), and helps produce stomach acid.
Signs of electrolyte imbalance in the body
Electrolyte Deficiency is a very common condition in Crohn's disease and Ulcerative colitis. The symptoms of electrolyte imbalance in the body include rapid heartbeat, sleep disorders, anxiety, muscle spasms, indigestion, chronic fatigue, dizziness, irritability, confusion, low blood pressure, headaches, thirst, and dry mouth.
Maintaining a normal level of electrolytes in the body is essential for our health!
What causes electrolyte imbalance?
Excessive sweating, physical activity, medications (including antibiotics, diuretics, and chemotherapy drugs), frequent diarrhea, poor diet, hormonal imbalances, chronic diseases (diabetes, heart failure, cancer, kidney disease), and certain diets.
Inflammatory bowel diseases, like Crohn's and Ulcerative colitis, which are manifested by diarrhea, may increase the chance of electrolyte imbalance. In fact, a lack of electrolytes is one of the main reasons why people with Crohn's and Ulcerative colitis often suffer from chronic fatigue, sleep disorders, muscle cramps, and anxiety.
Food sources rich in electrolytes include:
Sodium: bone broth, vegetable soups, chicken or meat, tomatoes, olives, natural salts (such as sea salt or Himalayan salt), soy sauce.
Chloride: tomato juices, soups, lettuce, olives, meat, celery, natural salts.
Potassium: bok choy, kale, avocado, Brussels sprouts, beans, lentils, apricots, prunes, zucchini, acorn squash, artichokes, chard, and bananas.
Magnesium: pumpkin seeds, spinach, avocado, almonds, cocoa, dark chocolate, bananas, cashews, chard leaves, edamame, quinoa.
Calcium: leafy greens, spinach, kale, sardines, yogurt, sesame, almonds, chia seeds, okra, broccoli, beans, figs, salmon, and sweet potato.
Stress reduction
When we are stressed, we may sweat more and may also pay less attention to our diet and fluid intake which can cause electrolyte imbalances. Furthermore, an electrolyte imbalance itself can lead to anxiety, irritability, mood swings, and fatigue, which feed the ongoing cycle of stress.
Certain medications, including antibiotics, diuretics, corticosteroids, hormonal medications, and blood pressure medications can cause a disbalance in our body's electrolyte levels.
Here is an electrolytes supplement I like in particular from iHerb:
