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An easy guide to hydration

Feeling tired? Run down? Not sleeping well? Skin not looking radiant? One factor underlying virtually everything in the body is how hydrated we are. Water is needed for every single biochemical reaction that happens, 24 hours a day. Making new cells? You need water. Trying for a new PB in the gym? You need water. Moving fat out of fat cells? You need water. Losing interest in replying to emails? You probably need water. Constipated? You guessed it.

Author
Sarah Carolides
What are
electrolytes?

Electrolytes are a group of ordinary minerals that carry an electrical charge when they dissolve in water. Because of this charge they can transmit electrical signals around the body and are also instrumental in dictating how much water is present in the blood and body cells. We’ve put together 5 different blends of electrolytes and other nutrients to target certain processes in the body and make sure our hydration works harder.

How do electrolytes work?

Sodium and glucose move into the cell balanced by potassium moving out. Water follows the sodium. The sodium is balanced by chloride ions which plays a key part in balancing the positive and negative electrical charges.

The sodium-potassium pump pulls sodium back out of the cell, potassium back in and water follows the sodium. Magnesium helps the cells turn nutrients into energy.

Calcium controls the muscles, transmits signals along the nerves and manages the heart rhythm.

How does hydration effect skin?
As the largest organ of excretion in the body, skin is important for maintaining body water levels and preventing water loss. Skin itself is approximately 30% water, which helps prop up plumpness, elasticity and resilience. Dehydration has been shown to be reflected in reduced elasticity and improving hydration levels has been shown to increase skin thickness and density, offset water loss through the skin and also improve skin hydration.
How does hydration effect energy?
Every single biochemical reaction in the body requires water as a catalyst. All aspects of metabolism slow down when water is restricted. However, the effects of hydration levels on energy has been hard to measure because many of our drinks are not just water. But we do know that even mild dehydration lowers blood volume and circulation, allowing less oxygen to flow around the body into the muscles and the brain. Because of the reduced capacity for electrical reactions, dehydration can also reduce the ability of muscles to contract and make them fatigue more easily.
How does hydration effect athletic performance?
Losing as little as 2% of your body’s water can slash your athletic performance by up to 20%. Dehydration affects endurance, strength, and recovery, keeping you from reaching your peak. Falling hydration levels will lead to an immediate decrease in physical functions. Everything from strength, endurance, flexibility and hand-eye coordination will suffer. Dehydration is often accompanied by an imbalance in essential electrolytes, which in turn can affect other hormonal processes and induce tiredness. It’s this disruption in electrolyte levels that causes muscle cramping, pain and soreness.
How does hydration effect recovery?
Water levels are crucial for wound healing and muscle recovery because of the blood flow, where the water in the blood carries nutrients to the cells to allow growth and repair. As well as transporting nutrients in blood flow, water passing through the cells flushes out the waste products including lactic acid, reducing muscle soreness. A lack of hydration will impair processes including protein synthesis needed to rebuild muscles. And as dehydration will have depleted crucial electrolytes, this also decreases the electrical signals that help muscles repair themselves.
How does hydration effect the liver?
Did you know that dehydration can reduce your liver’s ability to flush toxins by up to 30%? With less blood flow to this vital organ, the detoxification process slows, leaving your body burdened with waste and your energy levels depleted. Hydration is the foundation of liver health, ensuring your body operates at its best. Dehydration can also cause bile ducts in the liver to constrict, increasing the risk of developing gallstones. A 2021 trial monitoring over 16,400 participants for 9 years found that higher water intake was directly correlated with lower levels of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
How does hydration effect sleep?
Did you know that dehydration can disrupt your sleep cycle, reducing deep sleep by up to 25%? Without proper hydration, your body can’t fully rest and recover overnight, leaving you groggy the next day. One of the reasons we’re more likely to snore after an alcoholic night out is because of dehydration causing a dry mouth and nasal passages. Muscle cramps due to dehydration and disrupted electrolytes can interrupt sleep and of course, good hydration levels help to keep your body temperature constant during the night.
How does hydration effect focus?
Even mild dehydration can disrupt mood and cognitive function, causing immediate decreases in concentration, alertness and short term memory at all ages. Studies with as little as 2-3% induced dehydration resulted in impaired performance on tasks including visual perception, short-term memory and psychomotor ability.
Why is hydration so important?

Like every other living organism on the planet, humans need water to survive. It makes up 75% of body weight in infants but that decreases to 55% in the elderly. Sensitive homeostatic mechanisms throughout the body respond to deficits or excesses of only a few hundred millilitres of water. If a deficit is detected, water will be taken from inside the cells, causing them to shrink At this point the brain directs the kidneys to control the excretion of urine and we might start to feel thirst. If we have an excess of water, the opposite processes occur. Hydration is critical for the body’s ability to control temperature. Sweating is an important cooling mechanism and you can lose up to 2 litres per hour exercising in the heat. Sweating also results in a loss of electrolytes and a reduction in plasma volume.

The Zooki Hydration+ Range
Hydration+ Liver Health
Our Hydration+ Liver Health sachets deliver an optimised blend of calcium, sodium, potassium, magnesium and chloride for hydration and electrolyte balance - but we’ve also added some liver-supporting extras for good measure. Milk thistle, NAC and selenium, to name a few.
Shop now
Hydration+ Skin Radiance
A more gentle blend of optimised sodium, potassium, magnesium, chloride and calcium for hydration and electrolyte balance - plus a blend of B Vitamins and 150mg of Damasty, a clinically proven patented skin ingredient shown to improve skin radiance, brightness, evenness.
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Hydration+ Energy & Focus
Our energy and focus formula contains high strength sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium and chloride for enhanced hydration and electrolyte balance - plus a blend of L-Theanine and Caffeine to provide that 'Get up and Go' without the spike and crash of caffeine alone.
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Hydration+ Exercise & Recovery
Our Exercise and Recover sachets contain the strongest blend of sodium, potassium, magnesium, chloride and calcium to replace the increased electrolyte loss during exercise and sweating; plus extra nutrients to support optimal performance and recovery.
Shop now
Sarah Carolides
Meet the author...

One of the UK’s top functional medicine and nutrition specialists with over 20 years experience, listed by Vanity Fair as one of ‘The A-List people to know in London’

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