Do rehydration solutions replenish Potassium ?

Some rehydration solutions, like Pedialyte, contain potassium. The recipe you have listed does not replenish potassium - it’s as simple as possible for use in very challenging circumstances (e.g. cholera epidemics).

Thanks again Scott, yeah, I guessed over the counter type hydration solutions may contain potassium; I was referring mainly to the home made type solutions such as the one I listed.

I believed that the salt content of the solution was to replenish potassium, as I believed potassium is essentially a salt.

I've often read that, since takedown, to eat salty snacks and to add more salt onto foods, so what's the benefit of doing this ?

I find that coconut water works for me.  I dilute it with water.  I also eat bananas pretty much on a daily basis and sweet potatoes often.

The term “salt” is used a few different ways. There are many different salts - some are essential to life, and some will kill you in a hurry. Table salt is sodium chloride, and sodium balance is very important to health. I never received the guidance to eat salty foods, and I’m not sure it’s very good advice for most J-pouchers. It is true that chronic, frequent watery stools will tend to throw both sodium and potassium out of balance, if the dehydration doesn’t nail you first. The better advice, I think, is to ensure that we’re not gushing water out of our rear ends many times daily. That will lead to a much better result than rehydration.

If you really need rehydration solution, and your potassium tends to run low, you might want to look for a recipe that includes potassium citrate. Basic rehydration solution is designed to keep you alive until the cholera clears up, not for daily use over months or years.

I find that coconut water works for me.  I dilute it with water.  I also eat bananas pretty much on a daily basis and sweet potatoes often.

Thanks for recommendations.

Although I don't go out of my way to eat a potassium enriched diet, I actually eat many everyday foods which contain potassium; it's only since my recent low potassium level I've been consuming more bananas than normal.

When I compare the amount of dairy food I eat, especially drinking of milk, plus potatoes, fish, strawberries, to name but a few, my diet is certainly not lacking potassium.

I consume the rehydration solution maybe one or twice a week based on my urine colour and output.

Whilst awaiting my takedown surgery, I severely dehydrated many times which resulted with many emergency admissions into Hospital by Ambulance.

Currently I'm trying to distinguish the benefit of adding extra salt to food and consuming salty snacks and by doing so, what's being replenish ?

I think my biggest issue is not using salt as much as I should.  Also, just out of curiosity, did your doctor check your potassium levels as part of a physical or because you weren't feeling well?  I had mine checked during my hospital stay after surgeries, but I don't believe I have since then.  I was given potassium pills while in the hospital because my levels were low at the time.  I really don't know what they are right now.

I don't add salt either or eat that many salty snacks, that's why I'm wondering what are the benefits of doing so

I believed the salt within the home made hydration solution, plus salt content of foods was more than enough.

I also believe the added table salt was to replenish potassium.

Thanks.  I had blood tests done in April as part of my physical but never received the results.  At the same time my doctor left the practice.  So, I guess I'll check with the office.  When I get my new GP I'll see what blood tests will be ordered.

CTB23 posted:

Thanks.  I had blood tests done in April as part of my physical but never received the results.  At the same time my doctor left the practice.  So, I guess I'll check with the office.  When I get my new GP I'll see what blood tests will be ordered.

As you say GP, I assume you're in the UK too, if so, from my experience of GPs within the NHS, they 've only make contact after a blood test when something is amiss; maybe this is the same with all Doctors regardless.

Strange, you could always add 200ml of orange juice to your rehydration recipe.  That contains nearly as much potassium as a banana, you could probably then leave out the 20g sugar then too.  Or do half each so you have 2 different types of sugar...

Bobish posted:

Strange, you could always add 200ml of orange juice to your rehydration recipe.  That contains nearly as much potassium as a banana, you could probably then leave out the 20g sugar then too.  Or do half each so you have 2 different types of sugar...

Thanks, I actually drink a couple of glasses of Orange Juice daily as well as the rehydration solution.

I drink the hydration solutions a couple of times a week due to previous episodes of dehydration, which resulted in emergency admission to Hospital

I was also told to add salt to my food and to eat salty foods, like crackers and pretzels. I believe one benefit of the salt was to help the body absorb liquid better. 

Dave

Need to know if you are low on sodium or potassium particularly. Can also deplete magnesium with chronic diarrhea. ORS solution you describe is rehydrating—helps you absorb more water rapidly because of sugar and salt. If you are dry (dizzy, low on hydration), this is the best thing to take.

if you have electrolyte loss that is the primary issue, replacing that electrolyte is the way to go. Most commercially available stuff doesn’t have enough potassium or magnesium. They all have sodium. 

What I use for electrolyte replacement is something called Electro-Mix. It comes in convenient packets, mixes into 1L water, and can be purchased online from Amazon among others. It has no sodium. Most western diets have too much sodium already, so it’s easy to make it up. I don’t like the taste (potassium is bitter), but it covers up beautifully with some fresh lemon juice or a packet of flavor mix. 

I had a temp ostomy for 10 mos that was very high up. I lost electrolytes like mad and dehydrated easily. I was able to use this mix and salty snacks to both hydrate and balance my lytes. It meant daily use and constant drinking to make it work, but I managed to survive 10 months  of malabsorption and severe fluid and electrolyte losses with this stuff. Much less expensive and more effective than Pedialyte, and best product I could find out there for the purpose. 

Good luck.

for potassium google high potassium foods.  great to get it from food not supplements.  sweet potatoes tops the list!

i've had terrible dehydration problems--just had 6th ER visit two weeks ago--and in the summer i need to increase my salt intake.  as it is i take 2 g salt tabs daily.  everybody is different.  i have a k pouch.

often i'll use packets of electrolyte mix because they have very little sugar in them as compared to ready mixed stuff.  if somebody finds one without any sugar please post the name.

don't play around with an electrolyte imbalance as it can be very dangerous.  a Na level below 120 can trigger seizures.  you'll need to self-monitor how you feel between blood tests.  it's tricky for certain.  good luck and keep us posted please janet

Been a rough spring/summer for me having hydration issues too. Unfortunately, thinking it might be aggravated by new heart problems, so I’ve really been trying to do better with diet, fluids, and frankly, not being out long or active outside on hot days :-( Got too familiar with the local ER — I’m sorry to hear you’ve been in the same place, Janet. And I second Athena on needing to know the cause, as sometimes focusing on just salt or just potassium isn’t the best solution. We are all different genetics with different diets and our lost colons affect what we’re actually getting out of the foods we eat.

Without mail ordering anything (which I forget to do then don’t have anything on hand) my quick solutions lately have been V8 and/or Nuun tabs. Coconut water is also awesome, but without sugar it can be hit-or-miss for me on flavor. I see you’re in the UK, so I’m not sure about availability there. All do a way better job for me than nothing or just eating a banana or something salty with a Smart Water (my prior method.) I’m glad Janet mentioned sugar as I’ve also been cutting it way back after dealing with the fact that my altered system just doesn’t do well on glucose, sucrose or fructose (or sucralose or aspartame artificial sweeteners.)

It’s easy to get V8 literally anywhere in the States and an if I’m concerned about it going through me too fast, any bread, bagel or cracker with cheese will help. Nuun tabs are great for a refreshing water-based, lightly-flavored beverage (lots of choices and formulations) also without sugar. And I’ve started to see them at a lot more stores lately, online and offline. They taste good enough that I could, and sometimes do, drink one everyday. 

I am more often now taking actions to better prepare for not getting dehydrated in the first place, but recent experiences have taught me that there is nothing I can do at home once my system passes a certain point given the lack of a colon to support fluid re-uptake. Know what your signs are that you’ve gotten too far behind and then just get someone to drive you to the ER.

Incidentally, as others mentioned supplements, this is the current mix that is keeping my quarterly blood checks perfect, in addition to a healthy diet (including grass-fed organic meat, eggs, & dairy.) — Vit D, B-Complex, Vit C, Healthy Blood (natural iron) and Collagen Builder (all from Garden of Life) and also Milk Thistle (liver support.)

jen

so sorry to hear about heart condition and being in er.  too bad we aren't in same cities!   thanks for all the good info.

renal doc told me when my Na is low the K can increase.  very dangerous to have too much delta between the two.

this from article re benefit of cucumbers.  i like them in water.

Potassium is an electrolyte that helps regulate the amount of sodium retained by the kidneys.

One possible explanation for the (mildly) low potassium could be excessive sodium consumption. When the kidneys flush out all that sodium some potassium may go along for the ride.

Each of us interprets vague medical instructions differently. “Eat a lot of salt” definitely counts as vague.

For JLH, a sugarless (and no sweeteners), flavorless electrolyte concentrate is hi-lyte:   https://www.amazon.com/gp/prod...UKGVC3GJ20&psc=1. 

If the problem is water rather than electrolytes, keep in mind that the glucose in rehydration solutions helps increase the water absorption.

never had dehydration prob w j (15 yrs).  when one goes from a j to a k they lose even more intestine plus k doesn't absorb any water, like the j.  that to say, k pouchers have a more acute problem and amongst us all are different.  an over-simplification of my prob:  drink excess water and the Na is peed, requiring kidneys to pull Na from blood.  can't rebalance w water, electrolytes or anything, but rather need fluid/Na via IV.

n/a--thanks for the info.  here is link to buy

https://www.amazon.com/Hi-Lyte...d/dp/B073KQZ4XL?th=1

The Electro-Mix (made by Pfizer) is sugar free also.

I love V8–I buy the low sodium version, because it has plenty of sodium still (as does much of our food), but it has higher potassium.

Sodium and potassium live on the same column of the periodic table (HS science refresher). The body has a Na/K transporter in the gut that helps absorb them. The kidneys are supposed to be able to establish a gradient to regulate the amounts, so that we don’t have to be precise about what we eat.

The colon is where that transporter is most active, and where water is absorbed from the digestive tract using that transporter.

(At least, that’s what they taught us in med school.)

So, when we don’t have colons anymore, the small bowel has to adapt. If it doesn’t, we have all these awful issues with dehydration and electrolyte imbalance, not to mention malnutrition.

Diarrhea makes you lose both Na and K, because they haven’t had a chance to be reabsorbed due to rapid transit/inflammation/infection. That’s with or without a colon. Cholera is one example someone referenced earlier... and that’s why the World Health Organization oral rehydration solution formula was created. It’s cheap to make, simple, and it uses sugar and sodium to help the body absorb water back, reversing dehydration (which was lethal before this unless one could get access to a hospital).

Works well, from personal experience (with dysfunctional pouches and travel bugs). I managed to stay out of the ER with it. But it doesn’t give back potassium, so the muscle cramps can be wicked. That’s where additional K and Mg come in, and that’s where the Electro-Mix and any similar products are good. They don’t have sodium or sugar, which is very unusual (read a Gatorade label and that’s all you’ll find, really), and they have high amounts of what is needed.

So, I guess the optimal solution if dehydrated from diarrhea is the ORS solution plus this stuff. Plus lemon juice or crystal light or something to make it palatable for daily drinking.

I promise I don’t work for Pfizer. I am allergic to bananas and have always hated the overly sweet taste of coconut water (my family drank it straight from the coconut; I may be a changeling). V8 is great, but it’s not enough. I was told to drink Gatorade—a quick read of the label told me that was useless. Same with all its old competitors. There is a new one—Body Armor—that’s a bit better. After a lot of digging and label-reading (the back panel with the real contents, not the front label), the electro-mix had the best numbers I could find. And it actually helped.

I still needed sodium, like most people on this thread. But I found it easy to put more in my food. I didn’t like salty stuff til I had my high diversion. Then it was all I craved. I drank pickle juice or chicken broth for a quick hit. When I got really low after first getting home from the hospital, I started retching badly and couldn’t stop. My family was about to take me to the ER, but I had a sudden thought and asked for a cup of hot chicken broth. It worked—the retching stopped, the nausea let up, and I stopped shaking. That was my first bout of hyponatremia (low sodium), and it was scary. I learned not to let that happen again.

Anyway, best of luck—we are all so different in how our guts respond to this big trauma, and apparently it’s a lot of trial and error. What works for one won’t work for the next. So the collective wisdom of sites like this has helped me get ideas to test for myself... and I hope something I can offer helps someone else in turn!

To clarify, there is a Na/K transporter and also a Na/glucose transporter. Both help with absorption of water. Easier and more palatable to use the latter for hydration alone.

athena – thanks for the great information.