Endurance athletes running 150-mile races are often required to carry 2,000 calories’ worth of food for every day of their run. Amid their supplies, ultramarathon runners often have electrolyte supplements — tablets that contain sodium, potassium and other elements that regulate cell function.
Athletes use electrolyte tablets to ward off nausea, dizziness or even more dangerous side effects, such as seizures or death, that can come with a drop in sodium levels. But new research suggests this strategy isn’t as beneficial to the body as we’d like to think.
In theory, swallowing sodium restores athletes’ salt levels and ensures that their body keeps functioning during a long workout. Some brands also tout that electrolytes can stop cramping, but the scientific research doesn’t back up that claim.
Tracking the sodium levels of 260 ultramarathoners, a new study published in the Clinical Journal of Sports Medicine found that electrolyte supplements weren’t actually ...
