Electrolytes are important to your health. You can’t always get enough in your food.
Why are they important to your health?
Electrolytes are the smallest of chemicals that are important for the cells in the body to function and allow the body to work. The major electrolytes found within the body include calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium – there are others.
Electrolytes are critical in allowing cells to generate energy, maintain the stability of the cell walls, and to function in general. Electrolytes generate electricity, contract muscles, move water and fluids within the body inside and outside of the cells, and participate in many other activities.
The concentration of electrolytes in the body is controlled by hormones, most of which are manufactured in the kidney and the adrenal glands. There are specialized kidney cells that monitor the amount of sodium, potassium, and water in the bloodstream.
The body functions in a very narrow range of normal, and it is hormones keep the electrolyte balance within those normal limits.
An example of keeping electrolyte concentrations in balance includes turning on the thirst mechanism when the body gets dehydrated.
See Article – Electrolytes
How to easily get enough
