NoordCode's Electrolytes formula explained

When do you need electrolytes? | Sodium in NoordCode’s Electrolytes | Potassium in NoordCode’s Electrolytes | Magnesium in NoordCode’s Electrolytes | Other minerals

When do you need electrolytes?

People with a healthy lifestyle actually need more salt. Salt is an ingredient found in many processed products, and people prefer not to eat it.

The average person's food consists largely of processed foods such as breakfast cereals, cookies, bread, snacks and ready meals. Added together, processed foods account for 70% of the average person's salt intake. If processed foods are the main component of your diet, adding extra salt is unnecessary. In fact, adding extra salt may then become too much.

However, living a healthy lifestyle without processed foods can lead to a salt deficiency. Sometimes, it is important to replenish the deficiency, for example:

low-carb/ketogenic diet
With a low-carb diet, you lose more fluids. This is because carbohydrates help your body store water.

Whole food diet
Do you eat plant-based, animal-based products, or a combination of both? You will ingest less salt once you eat unprocessed foods and cook mostly at home (and not from packets).

Sweating heavily
Sweat contains salt, which leaves your body when you sweat. You sweat more during intense physical activity, in the sauna, or in hot weather. Therefore, sufficient salt is especially important during the summer months and for athletes or people who do physically demanding work.

Fasting
If you drink only water, tea, or coffee, you won't get any salt. In fact, if you fast with black coffee, you need more salt. Caffeine caffeine causes fluids (and therefore minerals) to leave your body faster.

Sodium in NoordCode’s Electrolytes

Salt is a controversial topic. There are many studies showing that excessive salt consumption can cause health problems. However, more recent research indicates that completely eliminating salt from food is just as harmful. Sodium, the main mineral in salt, is important for the functioning of our bodies. Extremely low sodium levels can cause headaches, nausea, fatigue, confusion and muscle cramps. How do you know how to find the right balance?

NoordCode Electrolytes contains 1.06 g of sodium from Celtic sea salt. This amount is based partly on the healthy lifestyle of NoordCode enthusiasts and partly on scientific findings. Let's see what science says about how much sodium you need daily.

The Nutrition Center recommends 1.5 grams of sodium per day for adults and a maximum of 2.4 grams. These amounts of sodium are equivalent to 3.25 grams of salt as recommended and 6 grams of salt as a maximum. However, the Nutrition Center indicates that the amount of salt you need varies from person to person. According to the Nutrition Center, it depends on how much salt you lose with an active lifestyle.

The World Health Organization also recommends limiting sodium to 2 grams per day, which, converted into salt, is 5 grams. According to the World Health Organization, this amount helps reduce the risk of high blood pressure and heart disease while still giving the body the amount it needs to function properly.

In the nuanced podcast on salt, neuroscientist Andrew Huberman (Standford University School of Medicine) indicates that salt requirements vary from person to person. According to Huberman, it is crucial to know your blood pressure to make decisions about salt and fluid intake based on that knowledge. For people without health problems, Huberman recommends a very general recommended intake of 3.2 - 4.8 g of sodium (equivalent to 8 to 12 grams of salt) and 4 g of potassium. More about potassium and its relationship to sodium is below.

Sodium-potassium pump

The sodium-potassium pump is a system inside our cells. It is a kind of "gatekeeper" that regulates the balance of sodium and potassium inside and outside the cells. The sodium-potassium pump is important because it helps various processes in our bodies, such as keeping our nerves, muscles and heart working properly. It also regulates the amount of water in our cells.

There is no absolute "perfect" ratio of sodium to potassium that applies to everyone, but health organizations recommend general guidelines.

According to most guidelines, the ideal sodium-to-potassium ratio is between 1:1 and 1:2. For every gram of sodium, you should get about 1-2 grams of potassium.

Taking too much sodium and too little potassium can lead to high blood pressure and other health problems. As discussed earlier, people today take in too much sodium and not enough foods rich in potassium.

The relationship between sodium, chloride and potassium

The relationship between sodium and potassium is incomplete without mentioning the mineral chloride. Sodium and chloride are strongly related. Together, they make up the salt we use as table salt, which is sodium chloride. On the other hand, as described earlier, sodium and potassium must be in balance.

Potassium in NoordCode’s Electrolytes

One serving of NoordCode Electrolytes contains 408 mg of potassium from potassium citrate. Earlier, we discussed the recommendation of 4 grams per day. In fact, independent food scientist Chris Masterjohn indicates that the optimal amount is between 4.7 and 11 grams per day.

Although we could have chosen a higher potassium dosage for our Electrolytes formula, nutrition is the best strategy for getting enough potassium.

A diet rich in fruits and vegetables provides sufficient potassium. You get optimal levels by eating 5-9 servings of fruits and vegetables per day. For people who find this difficult, the supplement potassium citrate contains the best absorbable form.

Potassium supplements are safe for healthy people if the total intake from food and supplements stays under 15 grams and is spread throughout the day. You don't want to overdose on a potassium supplement, or the kidneys will have trouble processing it. Within Europe, therefore, a maximum of 1,000 mg is recommended as a supplement.

The amount of potassium per serving looks like this:

Salmon: About 414 mg of potassium per 100 grams.
Yoghurt (unsweetened): About 255 mg of potassium per 100 grams.
White beans (cooked): About 561 mg of potassium per 100 grams.
Sweet potato (cooked): About 337 mg of potassium per 100 grams.
Potatoes (cooked): About 429 mg of potassium per 150 grams.
Spinach (cooked): About 466 mg of potassium per 100 grams.
Kale (cooked): About 491 mg of potassium per 100 grams.
Rosemary (dried): About 955 mg of potassium per 100 grams.
Tomatoes: About 237 mg of potassium per 123 grams.
Dried apricots: About 1162 mg of potassium per 100 grams.
Raisins: About 749 mg of potassium per 100 grams.
Bananas: About 358 mg of potassium per 118 grams.
Avocado: About 485 mg of potassium per half avocado (100 grams).
Oranges: About 181 mg of potassium per 130 grams.
Melon (e.g., cantaloupe): About 267 mg of potassium per 100 grams.

In summary, fruits generally provide 100-500 mg of potassium per 100 grams, and vegetables generally provide 200-1000 mg per 100 grams. These numbers are just estimates to give you an idea of the relative amounts. The exact potassium content varies depending on the soil's fertility or the fruit's or vegetable's size and ripeness.

Magnesium in NoordCode’s Electrolytes

Magnesium is also called the master mineral. It is needed for as many as 300 processes in the body. It supports bones and teeth and ensures that your nerves function properly. Magnesium is even good for mood, learning performance, concentration, and memory. You may have a magnesium deficiency if you suffer from headaches, muscle cramps or lack of energy.

You need about 300 to 350 mg of magnesium a day. This is found, for example, in pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds and dark chocolate. To get enough, you just have to eat a lot of this, which is almost impossible.

NoordCode Electrolytes contains 76 mg of magnesium per serving. With this amount, you can consume 2 servings per day without concern. You will still stay under the safe zone of 300-350 mg per day, and you can get the rest from food or a magnesium supplement.

The magnesium in NoordCode Electrolytes comes from sea minerals.

Why didn't we choose other minerals?

Other electrolytes

Calcium and phosphate are also electrolytes. Very few people are deficient in either mineral since both are easily obtained from food. This is also the main reason why we omitted these minerals from the NoordCode Electrolytes formula.

Most foods contain a small amount of calcium. Only a handful of foods contain a lot of calcium. Combine three of the following foods daily, and you will get enough calcium:

Dairy
You may already know that dairy is the main source of calcium. Yogurt and mozzarella cheese top the list, followed by milk and kefir.

Bones
If you can't stand dairy, edible bones are also a good source. Think bone-in sardines or anchovies. Ground bone powder is also sold online as a supplement.

Leafy greens
Pak choi and Chinese cabbage are vegetable sources of calcium. White beans, broccoli, and kale also contain calcium, but you need to eat at least 300 g of them to get the daily amount. Asian leafy greens are, therefore, a better choice.

Because phosphorus is so fundamental to the structure of all life on earth, there is plenty of phosphorus in almost every food, and it is very difficult to become deficient in it.

Trace elements

The same goes for trace elements. These are also good to get from food, as long as you eat a varied diet and are aware of where exactly what is in it. We will give you an overview here. With this list in mind, you can be sure you are getting enough trace elements (and other important nutrients)!

Boron: The main source of boron is dried prunes. With 3-4 dried prunes, you already have your daily amount. Raisins and dates are also rich in boron.

Chromium: Whole grains, such as buckwheat and rye, are rich in chromium. Shellfish, including mussels, lobster, and oysters, are also good sources.

Iodine: Iodine is especially found in kelp or nori skins.

Copper: Liver tops the list when it comes to copper. But dark chocolate is also a perfect source.

Manganese: By now, you have figured out that mussels are very rich in minerals. Next to chromium, mussels are the highest nutritional source of manganese.

Molybdenum: Black-eyed beans (black-eyed peas) are the number one food source rich in molybdenum, followed by liver. This makes liver, clams, and oysters one of the few food sources that score high on multiple minerals.

Selenium: Brazil nuts are known for their high selenium content. However, the selenium content of Brazil nuts varies greatly by country of origin. Beef kidneys are another good animal source of selenium.

Sulfur: Foods rich in sulfur are eggs, steak, onions, garlic and broccoli.

Zinc: Oysters are by far the richest source of zinc.

Conclusion

It seems counterintuitive, but the healthier you eat, the more sodium you lack. Salt is abundant in processed foods, but it is lacking in unprocessed foods, however. So, in this blog, we recommend adding salt to your diet or using an electrolyte formula such as the one from NoordCode. We give you an average guideline for healthy people. Those who want to know exactly how much extra salt is desirable can have their blood pressure measured by their doctor and get advice based on that. Magnesium, on the other hand, is difficult to get from food. You can be sure to get enough magnesium with NoordCode Electrolytes, specific magnesium-rich sources such as pumpkin seeds and dark chocolate, or a supplement.

Sources:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azb3Ih68awQ&t=2839s
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4G1BH85dAEQ
https://chrismasterjohnphd.com/tools/2019/10/28/getting-potassium-low-carb-diets-database/
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/05/160521071410.htm
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(18)31376-X/fulltext
https://chrismasterjohnphd.com/qa/2019/12/09/recommendations-magnesium-supplements-dosage-masterjohn-qa-files-22/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZlVGsOXb0I