HOW SODIUM WORKS IN THE BODY


Athletes are known to suffer with swollen hands and feet from water retention due to ingestion of electrolyte products too high in sodium during prolonged exercise in the heat. The body has mechanisms in place to effectively regulate and re-circulate sodium. It has been shown that too much sodium may interfere or neutralize these mechanisms.

It is known that sweat generates large sodium loss and that rapid sodium replacement neutralizes this loss by allowing water intake to dilute sodium content. However, high sodium electrolyte supplementation also disrupts the body's natural process by producing a hormone signaling to the kidneys to stop filtering and re-circulating sodium and instead excrete it. When this happens, another hormone is produced that dominates and causes fluid retention. As a result, you may experience puffiness and swelling because your sodium intake was too high.

The fact is that the human body only needs a small amount of sodium to function normally. Individuals require 250 mg of sodium per day. Athletes may need 500 mg. These amounts are easily supplied by natural, unprocessed foods. In fact, the average Canadian consumes approximately 6000 to 7000 mg per day.

Quite simply, an individual already has a vast supply of sodium already present in his/her body. The body also has a complex and efficient way of monitoring and re-circulating sodium back into the blood to maintain its balance. You still need to replenish sodium during exercise but it should be in amounts that cooperate with and not override these mechanisms.

The ideal approach is to ingest foods and drinks lower in sodium that cooperatively enhance the body's natural systems. When evaluating products, look for one that contains a moderate supply of sodium that supplies the necessary electrolytes but does not compromise internal regulation. REFRESH has specifically designed to work with the body in this regard