A basic skill any health-conscious parent needs to know today is how to make an electrolyte replacement when needed. I’ve written before about Switchel, which is a traditional thirst quencher and dehydration prevention drink. But, some people don’t care too much for the flavor of the drink which has water and small amounts of apple cider vinegar as the base.
I can relate as one of my children doesn’t care much at all for the sour taste of ACV even when extremely dilute in a beverage. As a result, I thought I would share how I make a homemade electrolyte replacement that appeals to that set of tastebuds too.
Commercial Electrolyte Replacements are Full of JUNK (and carcinogens)
Commercial electrolyte replacements are such nasty products! They are loaded up with chemicals, additives, and synthetics that should be avoided at all costs.
Check out the ingredients of Pedialyte, one of the most popular drinks for adults and children. It is recommended for preventing dehydration and given the thumbs up by many conventional doctors:
Water (unfiltered and likely fluoridated), Dextrose (GMO derived). Citric Acid (GMO derived and laced with MSG residue), Natural & Artificial Flavor (aspartame frequently hidden here), Potassium Citrate, Salt, Sodium Citrate, Sucralose (toxic and potentially carcinogenic), Acesulfame Potassium or Ace K (contains methylene chloride, a mutagen and likely carcinogen), Zinc Gluconate, and Yellow Food Dye 6 (causes adrenal tumors in animals).
What’s even more shocking about these commercial electrolyte replacement drinks beyond the toxic ingredients is that they don’t have much in the way of beneficial electrolytes in them!
I mean, seriously, look at the ingredients above. There are minerals such as potassium, sodium, and zinc electrolytes. That’s it other than additives and artificial sweeteners.
Thanks but no thanks. All that junk, some of it carcinogenic, for a few measly electrolytes is not worth it. A parent can do much better than that with just a few whole ingredients and some filtered water at home!
In raising three children for 18 years, I’ve never purchased a single bottle of Pedialyte and don’t ever intend to. That stuff is nasty and should be pulled off the market in my view. It is not fit for consumption by anyone let alone children.
Skip the Sports Drinks Like Gatorade Too
Sports drinks like Gatorade and energy drinks should never be given to children either. Not only are they loaded with junky additives and GMOs, but they have been found to erode tooth enamel and contribute to obesity issues just the same as soft drinks.
Years ago, one of my children had a coach who insisted that players drink Gatorade during soccer games. My very young son, who knew more than the coach on the matter, would just politely drink his water instead. He would consistently refuse the bottles of Gatorade being very aggressively pushed on him. I was so proud, but needless to say, that misinformed coach wasn’t too happy about it!
Fortunately, by the time my youngest was playing soccer, she had a coach who told the girls to drink water and never sports drinks. I was happy to see that at last, some coaches were starting to appear who actually read the research instead of getting sucked in by sports marketing hype.
Don’t you just cringe when you see a little kid at a sports event toting around a monster Powerade bottle? Do these parents have any idea how much GMO sugar and chemicals are in this stuff?
It’s much better to just give these kids plain bottled water to drink during events or a bottle filled with a homemade electrolyte replacement with real, healthy ingredients.
Homemade Electrolyte Replacement
Below is my recipe for a simple electrolyte drink that is tasty as well as effective. It is excellent for rehydrating after a hot sporting event, hydrating a day or two before a sports event, and/or recovering from the dehydration caused by a tummy bug.
Another yummy drink that replaces electrolytes quickly is homemade orangina.
Homemade Electrolyte Replacement
Easy recipe for homemade electrolyte replacement to drink after working out or dehydration from a stomach bug. Healthy sub for unhealthy sports drinks!
Ingredients
- 16 ounces filtered water
- 1 large orange or two small oranges
- 1 lemon
- 1/2 tsp land-based sea salt
- 1 tsp Azomite powder optional
- 1 Tbl raw honey optional, preferably local
Instructions
Juice the orange and the lemon. Mix the fresh juices with the sea salt, honey, and optional azomite.
Blend the juice mixture with filtered water in a tall glass.
Serve electrolyte replacement at room temperature, NOT cold as this inhibits absorption.
Sip and drink half within about 1 hour. Consume the rest as needed.
Refrigerate leftovers. Use within 2-3 days.
Recipe Notes
Use spring water or natural mineral water for this drink. Do not use club soda or reverse osmosis (RO) water. RO water is devoid of minerals and club soda is commonly made with RO or tap water.
Best Salt and Azomite as Electrolyte Source
I prefer Himalayan pink salt for an electrolyte replacement because it is land sourced. This type of sea salt is a lower risk for microplastic contamination and has over 80 minerals. Other sea salts like Real Salt contain about 60.
The azomite powder (volcanic rock dust) is listed as an optional ingredient to add even more electrolytes. It has not been specifically approved by the FDA for human consumption. If you feel more comfortable relying on the sea salt alone for the electrolytes in this beverage, that is fine. Here is more information on the safety of azomite according to the Weston Price Foundation:
It [azomite] is safe for human consumption. I recommend it because it is a natural, inexpensive mineral supplement. Tests have never been done on humans and won’t be because the FDA won’t allow it. There have only been studies with animals and it is a good mineral supplement for animals.
It does contain aluminum, but it is also rich in silica, which counteracts the aluminum. People have been eating clay and dirt as a tradition for thousands of years and all clay contains aluminum and silica (1).
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Hi I have to give my son pediasure as a meal replacement do you know of a Heather substitute for it? Because he is on a feeding tube.
Can you please help because the second ingredient is HFC. For the organic option it has cane suger…
Help plz
Thanks for this post! Can other fruits be used if there is an allergy? My son is allergic to citrus, strawberry and coconut. Thanks for explaining the why’s and how’s in your posts.
I’ve never tried any other fruits so not sure how it would work. If you try it, please let us know!
Question: Why is it important to serve at room temperature? Obviously, it will warm up inside the body, so I would appreciate a bit more enlightenment on that point.
When you drink cold beverages, it shocks the system and restricts the stomach and digestion affecting absorption in a negative way. Instead of using digestive fire for full absorption, you are using part of it to simply bring the beverage to body temperature first. In one case, rapid ingestion of a very cold drink induced cardiac arrest and death. Extreme case, for sure, but hopefully it illustrates the point. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10208334
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3318096/
I always put room temperature water bottles in my children’s sports bags before games. I advise them to drink room temperature water as it will absorb better than really cold water when hot, sweaty and thirsty (and avoid a tummy ache too in some cases!).
Curious about the Azomite Powder. The link provided said it’s good for soil amendment and fertilizer. So, it’s really okay to ingest?
It’s volcanic rock dust. Some people don’t feel comfortable ingesting it which is why it is an optional ingredient. I feel fine with it.
Corrine,
I don’t have any specific substitute recommendations to give you, but I wanted to let you know that I used to be part of a VitaMix Yahoo group. There was another member of the group who related that her son, who had to be fed through a tube, was showing noticeable improvement once she started giving him real food that she pureed in the VitaMix before putting through the feeding tube. I’d suggest doing some online searches about real food feeding tube formulas.
Corrine,
Not sure how this topic ties in with Sarah’s post but since anything about tubefeeding and using real food is so dear to my heart that I must reply. Most people have no clue that you can feed your loved one real food through a gtube. (Of course there are always some exceptions.) You must get hold of the most excellent book entitled Complete Tubefeeding by Eric Aadhaar O’Gorman. It has helped me tremendously with my son as I didn’t want him spending the rest of his life on beyond boring formulas. His specialist is fine with him receiving real food through his tube. I purchased my book through Amazon. Part 1 has loads of info on tube feeding and also any problem you will ever encounter. Part 2 is on tube food and nutrition and Part 3 gives many recipes and how to blend them effectively. The book answers any question you will ever need to know!! All the best!
i just want to thank you so much sarah for the life changing information that you send me it really changed my life:)
Here’s a fun story to go with the warning against drinking cold liquids. I am a Kundalini Yoga teacher, and this is a true story about Yogi Bhajan, the Indian yogi who is regarded as the Master of Kundalini Yoga. When Yogi Bhajan was a young man in his native India, he once took a tourist party up a mountain to a special shrine. Hot and thirsty after the long climb, he drank a large glass of ice-cold water and immediately passed out. He was declared dead. For 45 minutes there were no life signs. By the grace of God, he revived. Afterwards he recalled the near death experience that he had seen. He saw himself riding in an elevator, which eventually came to a stop and the doors opened. He stepped out and saw a path before him with a fork in the road. On the right-hand side was a warm and welcoming tavern with friends and relatives beckoning him to enter. On the left was a cold and snowy path to follow. After considering which way to go, he decided to chose neither! He turned around, got back in the elevator, and soon woke up back in his body. Those around him confirmed that he had seemed completely dead and then spontaneously came back. Let that be a warning about cold water!
I would just like you to be aware that the link for Azomite powder in the ingredients list IS NOT food grade, and only meant for plants and flowers. Whether you feel comfortable taking it or not, I feel it’s an unwise recommendation. Also, your reference on its acceptability is nothing more than someones opinion on the FAQ page, and no scientific article is provided. If you’d like to be taken seriously, please provide more credible sources other than one persons opinion on the matter.
I’ve never found “food grade” azomite anywhere. The azomite I have in my pantry and have used for 15 years is regular azomite the same as epsom salts that you buy at the supermarket can be used internally as a magnesium supplement or as fertilizer for plants. There is no “food grade” epsom salts either. If you don’t feel comfortable with azomite, then don’t take it. There is no scientific research on it with regard to humans as clearly stated in the article .. it is simply volcanic rock dust.
I can probably get my husband to drink this in place of Gatorade but as he works outside a lot and has no way to keep his stuff cold he freezes bottles to take and he likes his drinks cold….what component exactly is inhibited from absorption? I would think the same would hold true for the gatorade so it would still be an improvement I suppose.
Even if he insists on drinking it cold it would be a major improvement to lose the Gatorade.
Hi, I am having a colonoscopy tomorrow and part of the prep tonight I need to mix miralax (ugh!!) with something. They recommend gatorade, but I won’t do that. I cannot eat oranges, could I sub a bit of juice or something else?
My older sister works for a company called ‘Hebalife’ and they tend to use ‘sucralose’ and ‘acesulfame’ in their products.
Jim I can tell you, if all Kundalini Yoga teachers employ that much brain to evaluate a “true story” (gosh!) then I will never in my life visit a Kundalini Yoga teacher, fearing that they might inflict mental harm on me!
You clearly are religious of some sort, and I am not criticising that (now/here) but it would help YOU the most to engage some brain before posting such nonsense publicly.
You mention how R.O. water is devoid of minerals. What type of water do you have at your kitchen sink? I understand some water companies are now making an R.O. system that has a filter that adds back some of the minerals that are taken out. I would like to know what your family drinks, as I want to get something similar for my family, I respect the research and recipes you offer. Thank you.
I use spring water from a deep well filtered with a heavy duty carbon block with UV light at the tap.
Love this replacement for hatorade!
Tastes so much better. ( and never understood
their need for dyes in it)
Will be sticking to this recipe.
Thanks so much!
Maybe that is why it’s optional in the list of
ingredients.????
I didn’t add it. And it’s very refreshing.
Hi,
Could I make a simple homemade electrolyte drink of 16oz water, 1 teaspoon of Hawaiian Sea Salt, 1 Teaspoon of Lime Juice, and 1 tablespoon of Truvia? My budget is tight and I just kind of came up with that based on what I have on hand and kind of putting together information that I’ve read from several different sources, including your article. I’m new to exploring making my own electrolytes so I appreciate any insight you can give me.
Best not to use Truvia. It is an artificial sweetener (genetically modified stevia). Use date syrup, stevia, or raw honey.
Sarah,
Any idea How much potassium this recipe provides?
curious how much potassium, sodium and magnesium is in a serving. Lived where it is super hot with really high humidity and electrolyte replacement is necessary everyday in the hot season. Have been using a powder that I mix into filtered water, but sometimes it is out of stock. Does it have to have a sweetener.?
The honey is optional.