Before adding electrolyte drinks to your daily routine, here's what expert wants you to understand about hydration

With electrolyte powders and drinks gaining popularity, here's what you need to know before making them a daily habit.

Electrolytes have taken over the internet, with everyone from celebrities like Rannvijay Singha to social media influencers obsessing over adding them to their water. But are these drinks really necessary for everyone? In an interview with HT Lifestyle, Nikita Garg, celebrity nutritionist and founder of Entech Wellness, explains who benefits from electrolyte drinks and whether you really need to include them in your daily routine.

Do we need electrolytes?

“Everyone is busy debunking electrolyte drinks. But let me turn the tables - what if the real question is not why they are everywhere, but why our bodies are asking for them more than ever?,” said Garg. We also need to understand that dehydration sometimes cannot be resolved alone by drinking three litres of water; electrolytes depletion also needs to be taken care of.

We also need to understand that dehydration sometimes cannot be resolved alone by drinking three litres of water.

According to Garg, we may not be athletes, but we are electrolyte imbalanced. Sodium alone is not the story. Indian diets are now very low in magnesium, the electrolyte that cramps away, insomnia away. When you feel that 4 pm energy crash, frequent headaches, leg cramps at night or constant fatigue even after drinking 3-4 litres of water in a day, that’s often not dehydration. That’s electrolyte depletion.

“So, do you really need a 100 ₹fancy bottled drink? No. But do you need to think beyond plain water? Yes, but I don't always recommend packaged drinks,” said Garg.

What many of these commercial drinks also bring is added sugar, artificial colours, additives and extra calories that you never needed in the first place. Sipping them all day thinking they are healthier than water is just expensive, flavoured sugar water. This is where our understanding of wellness goes wrong. We believe health has to be complicated and commercial. It doesn’t.

How should we add electrolytes?

“I highly recommend turning to our own electrolyte drinks. The ones we forgot. Nature has already given us smarter choices,” said Garg. A glass of chaas with roasted jeera and salt after lunch, tender coconut water on the way home, lemon water with pink salt and a sherbet naturally sweetened with stevia or monk fruit extract for those who sweat heavily -these are India’s original electrolyte drinks.

It's important to know that neither home-based nor commercial products have to be overdone.

Commercial electrolyte sachets are helpful when you are travelling, or you keep forgetting to carry your bottle before your intensive gym session – that’s where commercial products have to step in. Nothing beats fresh food and water.

“It's important to know that neither home-based nor commercial products have to be overdone. Listen to your body’s internal water sensors maintained by osmoreceptors and hormones like Anti-Diuretic Hormone and Aldosterone,” explained Garg.

Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.