What are electrolytes?

Question

A doctor told my girlfriend that she needed more vitamins and so I did some research and apparently vitamins are electrolytes. Anyway so I bought her a lot of gatoraide because I saw on tv that it has a lot of electrolytes and makes you really fast at sports. But she's getting sicker now and is slower at everything! I'm not sure why she's so slow at sports now because she used to be fast and electrolytes make you faster too right? So maybe the doctor is a quack and something else is wrong. Someone else told us that vitamins are like goosebumps but I have no idea what that means.

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this is confusing for me.
so i have to take salt and what the hell are ions and put it in bodily fluids? what like pee or melt down a car battery or something? electro currents so what are you saying my girlfriend is going to be a lightbulb? dont understand what bears have to do with this, i can't get one even if i needed it though they're hard to find so i hope this potion works without bears. okay well i dont know how to refine sugar so thats good okay so....salt and ions into urine into a car battery(??) and can i skip the bear part? ok then add fresh fruit? i don't grow my own fruit can i use fruit from a grocery store instead or is that too unfresh? i should ask my neighbour if he knows how to do this because i have a lot of questions. like does it have to be my pee? her pee? or can it be anyones? does it have to be from her family?

Answer 1

OK, first of all VITAMINS are not the same as ELECTROLYTES. But rather electrolytes are more related to the essential MINERALS we have in our body. Vitamins include Vitamins A, B's, C, D, E, F, G, K, Folic Acid, etc. And how about the minerals? These includes sodium, magnesium, calcium, potassium, iron, zinc, manganese, etc. (Now forget about that minerals.)

Now what about these electrolytes? ELECTROLYTE is a medical or scientific term for SALTS (not the table salts we use in foods!). These kinds of SALT are specifically referred to as IONS. When we say ELECTROLYTES, it implies that these IONS or SALT are electrically-charged; either positively charged (+) or negatively charged (-).

Your body contains those SALTS or IONS which we call electrolyes.Your body contains the following major electrolytes:
>sodium (Na+).............>potassium (K+)
>chloride (Cl-)..............>calcium (Ca2+)
>magnesium (Mg2+).....>bicarbonate (HCO3-)
>phosphate (PO42-)......>sulfate (SO42-)

Your body fluids which includes your blood, plasma, and fluids in your cells contain high concentrations of SODIUM CHLORIDE (same as the table salt) which has SODIUM IONS (Na+) and CHLORIDE IONS (CL-).

The previous answerer compares the body to a BATTERY.It is a very good analogy as our body in fact undergoes ELECTRICAL ACTIVITIES. Our cells carry electrical impulses like nerve impulses and muscle contraction across itself and to other cells. Inorder to do that certain VOLTAGES across their cell membranes MUST be maintained. And it is the function of the electrolytes to maintain such VOLTAGES.

Now, those electrolytes are mainly maintained by adequate intake. Generally, we get them from the foods we eat or from our drinks. For example oranges and bananas are very good sources of Potassium which will give you potassium ions (K+). The table salt we add in our foods provides sodium and chloride ions. Many commercial food preparations are fortified with minerals that can provide the body with IONS required .Sports drinks are usually added with sodium chloride or potassium chloride.

However, we can also loss easily those electrolytes in our body. Sweating (especially during active movement or exercise), vomiting and having diarrhea can loss electrolytes quickly.

When the electrolyes in the body is out of balance, the functions of the body system is placed in jeopardy. Muscle contraction activities will be affected, making a person weak. Severe electrolyte imbalance can even make the heart to stop working. In severe defeciency, supplementary electrolytes are given either by oral intake or by injection.

Now let's go back to your girlfriend. If the doctor said she needs more vitamins, I hope she has some dietary insufficiency with some vitamins. Fruits and vegetables would be the very good sources of vitamins. Fresh ones contain higher vitamins and minerals but any source can also provide good amount . Fresh fruits and vegetables means those that are not canned or frozen. It does not necessarily mean FRESH from the garden you grow. You can have them from any fruit and vegetable markets.

If the current doctor insists that she only lacks vitamins yet her being weak continues and she is getting sicker, there is a possibility that there is something wrong that needs to be identified. She needs to find another doctor to have proper diagnosis and treatment.

Well, on tthe things that confuses you:
=ions bodily fluids.
>>Bodily fluids include blood, plasma,sweat,etc. These fluids contain IONS or the SALTS found in the body.
=my girlfriend is going to be a lightbulb?
>>That's is not the implication of being ELECTRICALLY CHARGED in here. It ismerely the fact that electrical activities are involved in cells activities to keep your body going.
=don't know how to refine sugar.
>>You do not need to. Any sugar or any carbohydrates containing foods can provide with the same energies. The other answerer mentioned "without refined sugar" for some reasons - not getting extra calories or maybe due to its allegedly unhealthy effects.
=salt and ions into urine?
>>the kidney functions to maintain the balance of electrolytes and some of these electrolytes are excreted into the urine.
=ions into a car battery??
>>it is just a comparison. Batteries give power for a car to run. In our body, it is the ions that keeps our muscles to contract and keep moving.
=don't grow my own fruit?
>>you do not need to. You can have the fruits or vegetables from the market. If no any resource available, the other option will be those commercialized preparations fortified with vitamins or minerals, or can be those in supplemental form such as tablets or sports drinks for example.

Answer 2

Vitamins and electrolytes are completely different things, and you're worrying and thinking a lot more than need be.
The most prevalent electrolytes in people are calcium, potassium, sodium, magnesium, chlorine, carbonates, and phosphates. For instance, sodium and chloride are in fairly high concentration in the blood, and sodium chloride is basically table salt. A little high school chemistry would be nice for a better understanding.
In terms of electrolytes and muscle function, all cellular function requires the proper functioning of electrolytes, but there's no simplistic correlation, and if your girlfriend is ill, it would be quite strange to expect some Gatorade to make her better. Human physiology is many orders of magnitude more complex than that, and overly simplistic thinking is how we get a vibrant market in supplements without a corresponding increase in health.
I also find it hard to imagine that your girlfriend would have a vitamin deficiency, but not knowing the facts I'd not want to comment on that aspect of your question any farther.

Answer 3

if a doctor told your g/f she needed more vitamins, she isn't going to meet her needs with gatorade. i'm sure your heart was in the right place, but gatorade is just full of sugar. buy her a good multivitamin, even a prenatal one, even if she isn't pregnant....it is FULL of every vitamin and mineral to help her get strong. If she is really as sick as you say and you are this worried about her, please take her to the hospital....she could be dehydrated and need medical attention. good luck!!

Answer 4

its the stuff in gatorade that we need