WEBVTT - What are electrolytes?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Brainstuff from house stuff works dot com where

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<v Speaker 1>smart happens. Hi am merciall brain with today's question, what

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<v Speaker 1>are electrolytes? For example, when you see a commercial for

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<v Speaker 1>Gatorade or some of their sports drink like that and

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<v Speaker 1>they talk about electrolytes, what are they talking about. An

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<v Speaker 1>electrolyte is a medical scientific term for salts, specifically for ions.

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<v Speaker 1>The term electrolyte means that this ion is electrically charged.

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<v Speaker 1>For example, your body fluids things like your blood, your plasma,

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<v Speaker 1>the lymph that's flowing through your lymph nodes are very

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<v Speaker 1>similar to seawater. These fluids contain a lot of salt,

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<v Speaker 1>also known as sodium chloride. The electrolytes and sodium chloride

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<v Speaker 1>are the sodium ion and the chloride ion. When you

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<v Speaker 1>drink salt and it dissolves in why or it splits

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<v Speaker 1>into these two charged ions. As for your body, the

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<v Speaker 1>major electrolytes include sodium and chloride, which we just mentioned, potassium, calcium, magnesium, bicarbonate, phosphate,

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<v Speaker 1>and sulfate. These electrolytes are important because they're what your cells,

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<v Speaker 1>especially your nerve, heart and muscle cells, used to carry

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<v Speaker 1>electrical impulses through nerve fibers. When you exercise heavily, though,

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<v Speaker 1>you lose electrolytes in your sweat, particularly sodium and potassium.

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<v Speaker 1>These electrolytes have to be replaced to keep the electrolyte

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<v Speaker 1>concentrations of your body fluids constant. So many sports drinks

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<v Speaker 1>have sodium chloride or potassium chloride added to them. They

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<v Speaker 1>also have sugar and flavorings to make these ions taste better.

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<v Speaker 1>Another example where electrolyte drinks are important is when an

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<v Speaker 1>infant or a child has a chronic vomiting or diarrhea problems, say,

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<v Speaker 1>because of an essenal flu virus. When children vomit or

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<v Speaker 1>have diarrhea, they lose electro lights. Again, these electro lights

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<v Speaker 1>and the fluids have to be replaced to prevent dehydration

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<v Speaker 1>and seizures. Therefore, drinks like pedia Light have sodium and

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<v Speaker 1>potassium in them, just like the sports drinks do. However,

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<v Speaker 1>pediatricians don't recommend giving sports drinks to a sick kid

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<v Speaker 1>because sports drinks usually have a lot of sugar, and

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<v Speaker 1>sugar isn't particularly good for a sick kid. Be sure

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