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Make Your Own
Natural Sports Drink |
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Salt has a very unique property--it's atomic structure is not
molecular, it's electrical.
The benefit we receive from salt is it's electrical charge, the
salt itself actually still remains in it's original form. If you
were to take a glass of water, and dissolve salt into it, the salt
would "disappear" into the water. However, when the water
evaporates, there will be salt in the bottom of the glass.
This electrical charge is essential to the life functions in our
bodies.
So basic is this electrical function, that salt is one of a group
of elements called "electrolytes". These are made up of ions, which
are groups of atoms that carry a positive or negative electric
charge. An ion can be either positively charged or negatively
charged, and, like magnets, opposites attract.
Sodium is positively charged and chloride is negatively charged,
so they attract each other and bond tightly. Our bodies also contain
other electrolytes, including potassium (+), calcium (+), magnesium
(+), bicarbonate (-), phosphate (-), and (sulfate (-).
Electrolytes are essential because your cells use them to
transfer liquids, nutrients, and wastes across their membranes and
to carry electrical impulses through nerves and muscles to
communicate with other cells. Salt is even essential to brain
function--without it, our brains would not even be able to send a
message to lift a finger.
The kidneys work to keep electrolyte concentrations in your blood
constant when your body changes. When your body perspires (from
exercise or high temperature), for example, electrolytes are lost in
the sweat and must be replaced to keep the electrolyte
concentrations of your body fluids constant. This is why athletes
drink "sports drinks" after exertion--to replace the salt they have
lost.
Did you ever do the salt conductivity experiment in science
class? You would have attached two ends of an electric current to a
light bulb and submerged it into a glass with distilled water. The
bulb would not have lit up, because distilled water has no
conductivity. But when you added a bit of salt to the water, the
bulb would start to glow. It's the same in our bodies. If there is
not enough salt in our body fluids, the electrical charge of our
bodies will be weak and the electrical functions won't "spark."
Instead of buying a sports drink made with industrial sodium
chloride, refined white sugar, and artificial colors, try one of
these. And if you haven't been to
Debra's natural
sweetener website Sweet Savvy yet, go take a look. She's got
over 200 recipes for the yummiest desserts, all made with natural
sweeteners.
Both sugar and and salt help your body absorb and retain the
water to prevent dehydration, as well as replenish the salt to
prevent hyponatremia (that's low blood sodium). Both of these
conditions can send you to the hospital.
The ideal proportions for a sports drink are 1/3 cup sugar and
1/4 teaspoon salt to 1 quart water, plus flavoring to taste. Once
made, it should be kept refrigerated.
Different sweeteners are made up of different kinds of sugars.
Since sucrose is recommended, Debra suggests maple syrup, or fresh
sugar cane juice (this is available in some areas of the country,
and contains all the nutrients and enzymes present in raw foods).
Lemon, lime or any juice can be used for flavoring (if you use a
sweet juice, reduce the amount of sweetener just a bit to keep the
balance).
"THE ORIGINAL" HIMALAYAN CRYSTAL SALT SPORTS DRINK
- Mix all the ingredients together.
- Refrigerate until you are ready to drink it.
NOTE: This combination of maple syrup and lemon is the basis of a
very famous cleansing fast. It's even better for your body with "The
Original" Himalayan Crystal Salt. | 
