If you only drink plain water after sweating a lot, be careful of suffering from "hypokalemia"!

In the summer, when we sweat a lot, our bodies lose a lot of water. Everyone knows that we need to drink more water. Although boiled water is the healthiest drink, drinking water alone may not be enough.

For people who sweat a lot, a large amount of electrolytes are lost in the body, especially potassium. Excessive loss may lead to hypokalemia.

Beware of hypokalemia after heavy sweating

According to Qianjiang Evening News, a man in Hangzhou woke up in the morning and found that he could not get out of bed. He was also weak all over and had difficulty lifting his limbs. The hospital examination found that the man had severe hypokalemia. The doctor said that he had hypokalemia because he only drank boiled water to quench his thirst after sweating a lot.

Screenshot of news report

Under normal circumstances, the proportion of potassium excreted through sweat is about 3%, but when sweating a lot, the amount of potassium excreted will increase significantly. In addition, electrolytes such as sodium and chloride will also be lost with sweat, and only replenishing water will aggravate electrolyte deficiency.

Potassium is an indispensable trace element for the human body. Physiological functions such as heartbeat, neuromuscular activity, and breathing all require a normal concentration of potassium ions to maintain.

The normal serum potassium concentration is 3.5~5.5 mmol/L. If it is lower than 3.5 mmol/L, people will experience symptoms such as muscle weakness, relaxation, paralysis, and even respiratory muscle paralysis, which can be life-threatening in severe cases.

Potassium plays the following roles in the human body:

Maintain normal metabolism

Heart beat and muscle contraction both depend on the synergistic action of sodium, potassium and other ions. The metabolism of carbohydrates and proteins also requires the participation of potassium.

Maintain electrolyte balance

Potassium is very important for maintaining cell integrity and electrolyte balance. Both high and low blood potassium concentrations can affect human health.

Helps lower blood pressure

Potassium plays an important role in preventing chronic diseases such as hypertension, but potassium will only have a blood pressure lowering effect when hypertension is caused by high sodium intake (high-salt diet).

For patients with hypertension that is not caused by a high-sodium diet, potassium supplementation will not lower their blood pressure. For people whose blood pressure is already normal, potassium intake will not lower their blood pressure.

5 minor problems are signs of potassium deficiency

In order to maintain the stability of blood potassium, the kidneys are like a "back valve". When potassium intake is too much or a large amount of potassium overflows from the cells, it will excrete excess potassium through urine; if the intake is insufficient, the excretion of potassium will be reduced.

When potassium is deficient, the body will use some seemingly "minor problems" symptoms to remind you:

fatigue

The most common symptoms of potassium deficiency are fatigue and weakness, which may include feelings of tiredness, confusion, blurred consciousness, and even depression or hallucinations.

cramp

Potassium helps muscles communicate with nerves and helps muscles contract. Potassium deficiency can cause cramps, muscle spasms, and pain.

Heart discomfort

Potassium deficiency can cause symptoms such as palpitations, irregular heartbeat, arrhythmia, dizziness, etc.

Digestive disorders

Low potassium levels can cause loss of appetite, nausea, and vomiting.

Restlessness

Potassium deficiency can cause neurological symptoms such as irritability, fatigue, and dizziness.

In addition to people who sweat a lot as mentioned in the previous news, such as those who do a lot of exercise or outdoor activities, those who vomit or have diarrhea for a long time, and those who are taking medication , they should also pay attention to potassium supplementation.

Vomiting or diarrhea can cause severe dehydration in the human body and lead to electrolyte imbalance; people taking diuretics and steroid drugs are also prone to potassium deficiency.

In addition, taking large amounts of potassium-containing drugs or potassium preparations can lead to excessive potassium in the body, which may cause heart block, slow heartbeat, and even stop fluctuating in severe cases. When using potassium drugs for treatment, be sure to follow the doctor's instructions.

You can get enough potassium from food

For people who do not take in enough potassium or lose too much potassium, they need to focus on supplementing potassium in their lives.

The Chinese Nutrition Society recommends that the appropriate potassium intake for healthy adults is 2000 mg/day ; to prevent chronic diseases, the recommended potassium intake is 3600 mg/day.

Eating more potassium-rich foods in your daily diet can help supplement your body. When choosing potassium-supplementing foods, you should not only look at the potassium content, but also look at the "potassium nutrient density", which is the value of potassium content divided by calories.

1

Eat half a pound of fruit every day

Many people believe that bananas are the best potassium supplement. They are indeed high in potassium, but they are also high in calories. If measured according to the above indicators, 100 grams of bananas contain 256 mg of potassium, 93 kcal of calories, and a potassium nutrient density of 2.75. Calculated in this way, the potassium nutrient density of oranges is 3.31, cantaloupe is 5.59, and papaya is 6.06.

Most fruits are high in potassium and low in sodium. When choosing, you can refer to your personal preferences and pay attention to the variety.

2

Replace some staple foods with whole grains

Replace some staple foods with potatoes and grains in your daily diet, such as potatoes, sweet potatoes, taro, and yam, as well as grains such as millet and red beans.

3

Mushrooms and green leafy vegetables are essential

Some vegetables are more efficient in replenishing potassium. Spinach, kale, amaranth and other green leafy vegetables have high potassium content. Fungal vegetables are particularly high in potassium content. You can eat more button mushrooms, oyster mushrooms, and button mushrooms.

If you want to supplement potassium, you can eat more vegetables listed in the following table.

4

Cooking with low-sodium salt

Low-sodium salt is salt that has appropriately reduced the sodium content in table salt and increased the potassium content. It contains about 25% potassium chloride, which not only helps reduce sodium but also increases potassium.

5

Eat less processed foods

During processing, potassium is lost from foods and large amounts of salt are often added, so processed foods tend to be “high in sodium and low in potassium.”

It should be noted that for people with kidney disease, the kidney's ability to excrete potassium is reduced. Excessive potassium intake at one time is likely to lead to hyperkalemia. This group of people should not eat too much potassium-rich food.

Drink some water with "ingredients" in summer

Plain water is known as the "most suitable drinking water". However, in the summer when a lot of sweat is lost, you can drink some "flavored" water.

Salt water

Drinking some light salt water after losing a lot of sweat can replenish electrolytes in time. You can add 0.15 grams (a teaspoon of seasoning spoon) of salt to 1 liter of boiled water to make the water slightly salty. You can also choose natural mineral water or sports drinks.

People who do not sweat a lot and have a strong taste in the mouth do not need to drink light salt water to avoid excessive sodium intake.

lemonade

When the weather is hot, people often have a poor appetite. Drinking some sour lemon water can stimulate the appetite and aid digestion. Cut a fresh lemon into thin slices and put it in a cup, then pour in water that is not too hot. A large piece of lemon with skin can be brewed with 1 liter of water.

Honey water

Honey can bring water molecules into the small and large intestines to prolong their residence time in the intestines, which helps replenish water. Add 1 spoon of honey to 500 ml of water, and appropriately reduce the amount of staple food for dinner to reduce sugar intake. Diabetic patients, gout patients, and infants under one year old should not drink it.

Bitter Melon Water

The compounds contained in bitter melon, such as bitter melon, bitter melon saponin, and flavonoids, can help clear away heat and relieve summer heat. Soak fresh bitter melon slices in water at about 60°C, or boil them and cool them down for drinking. Do not drink too much every day, 300 to 500 ml is enough. People with spleen and stomach deficiency, low blood pressure, and low blood sugar should be careful when drinking bitter melon water.