What are the best electrolyte drinks for kids?

drink wholesome makes the best electrolyte drinks for kids.

Written by Jack Schrupp & endorsed by Baylee Reller, RDN

Can kids have electrolytes?

---

Electrolytes are minerals with positive or negative charges that play an essential role in maintaining fluid balance in the body. They are depleted when we sweat or urinate, and must be replenished. The most common electrolytes are sodium, calcium, and potassium.

We all need electrolytes to survive, and children are no exception. Most children should be able to get enough electrolytes from eating a balanced diet, but sometimes electrolyte drinks are needed to supplement electrolyte intake. This is often the case during intense exercise in the heat, or during bouts of vomiting and diarrhea.

A good electrolyte drink only needs 3 ingredients: water, salt, and sugar. Salt is made of sodium and chloride, which are the two electrolytes we lose the most of through sweat and pee. We also lose a small amount potassium, calcium, and magnesium this way, but not enough to warrant supplementation

Sugar is important because it increases electrolyte absorption. That said, a little bit goes a long way. Only a few grams of sugar are needed to get electrolytes where they need to go, which means electrolyte drinks like Gatorade and Powerade with over 30 grams of Added Sugar are not healthy.

In summary, if an electrolyte drink is full of sugar, or contains more than just a handful of ingredients, it is probably not good for kids. Keep reading to learn more.

What are the best hydration drinks for kids? 

---

Many electrolyte drinks contain ingredients that you should think twice about putting into your body, or giving your kids. These include fake sweeteners, fake flavors, and food additives like anti-caking agents, colors, and preservatives.

Fake sweeteners, fake flavors, other food additives can disrupt your gut microbiome — the collection of microorganisms living in your gut. This is a big concern because a healthy gut microbiome can directly (and positively) support your child’s immune system and overall health. On the contrary, an unhealthy gut microbiome is a leading driver of inflammation, and linked to the development of several chronic diseases.

It follows that the best hydration drinks for kids are made with a short list of simple ingredients. The fewer the ingredients, and the more the ingredients look like real food, the less likely your hydration powder will be to compromise gut health. Remember, the gut is meant to digest unprocessed or minimally processed real foods, not artificial or refined ingredients.

Why drink wholesome? 

---

drink wholesome is made with real foods.

We make the best kids electrolyte drink because we use 100% real food ingredients. 

our ingredients: 

blueberries, coconut water, maple sugar, sea salt

the alternative:

SUGAR, DEXTROSE, CITRIC ACID, SALT, SODIUM CITRATE, NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR, MONOPOTASSIUM PHOSPHATE, CALCIUM SILICATE, MODIFIED FOOD STARCH, CARAMEL COLOR, RED 40

Most other companies use ingredients that are either artificial, or so processed that they look nothing like real food. Ingredients like these are hard to digest, and therefore spend extra time in your digestive tract. This can cause your colon to absorb extra water, which can lead to diarrhea. Partially digested food additives can also feed your gut bacteria, which release gas as they eat. Extra gas can cause bloating, flatulence, stomach pain, and even constipation. Basically, food additives can cause painful side effects. 

In the long term, eating lots of food additives can disturb regulatory pathways in your intestines, leaving you with a dysbiotic gut microbiome. As you just learned, an unhealthy gut is a huge problem, especially for growing children.

Unlike most electrolyte drinks, our kids hydration drink does not contain any artificial or heavily-processed ingredients. We use a short list of simple ingredients like real fruit, coconut water, maple sugar, and sea salt. Not only are ingredients like these natural, but they are also delicious! Give you kids an electrolyte drink that looks and tastes like real food, not a science experiment.

In case you were wondering, the coconut water and sea salt are where most of the electrolytes come from, and the fruit and maple sugar help transport these electrolytes to the body tissues that need them the most. This is a natural way to hydrate, and perfect for kids of all ages.

★★★★★

simple

“I’ve got the whole family using the hydration mix. My kids and husband absolutely love it! So glad I won’t be buying any more Gatorade.” – Deardra

Read more reviews.