Most medical practitioners will tell you that if you are thirsty all the time it means you may have diabetes. While diabetes does come with that first sign, something much simpler is also happening that no one is ever talking about!

Let’s look at the biochemical nature of thirst; shall we? I will not get into chemical equations, have no worries. I just merely want to visit the cell level. When a cell doesn’t get water inside of it or lacks water on its outside, we feel thirsty. So the medical industry tells you “go ahead, drink some water.” But we have a problem. Each cell has openings (gates) that are closed unless something will open them.

The little video below shows you how the gate opens and closes. I call these gates “mouths” of the cells for simplicity. A cell must be able to open its mouth to get water in. The opening requires sodium and chloride (salt in common knowledge) since sodium (Na+) and chloride (Cl-) are opposites in charge in ionic form (they are in ionic form in the body). Opposites attract so in order for them to get closer, they send a shock of electricity through the cell, which opens the gates (mouths). When the gate is opened, sodium can go in (chloride stays out) and potassium also goes in. Hence the name: sodium-potassium gate–or pump. The video below is not created by me but is linked from Youtube.

If the gates cannot open, you can drink as much water as you wish but they will not be able to quench your thirst; water will not be able to enter the cells. Thus you can drink until the cows come home and you will remain thirsty!

As the video above shows, when you are thirsty, you first need to have enough salt in you to break down into sodium and chloride to open the gates and also enough potassium. Potassium is a diuretic, so it is needed to release the toxic used water from the cell whereas sodium grabs fresh water as it enters the cell. When the cell is in balance this way, it can refresh its water as it needs to and so you will not feel thirsty.

Thus if you know you are not diabetic but you are thirsty all the time, instead of grabbing a glass of water, grab a little salty something AND a glass of water. Particularly if you are in a very hot region or exercise a lot, you evaporate sweat water and salt with your body’s cooling system as it cools itself. You need to replace water AND salt, not just water. Drinking too much water without salt can harm you in what is called water toxicity! Be aware that soft drinks, teas, coffees, and alcohol are not hydrating and are not equal to water! When thirsty, have some salt and water. And by water I mean WATER!

Which salt should you eat? I have several articles on salt in this blog and if you page back to the types of salts I wrote about, you will learn that white salt is what you want and purified kind–I know, there are all kinds of advertisements and articles on natural sea salts but of course, everyone wants to sell something. In just one sentence: every salt on earth is sea salt, and that includes your table salt to the Himalayan salt coming from the top of the mountain. All are sea salts. The difference is how much gunk they carry. Natural unpurified salts carry a lot of trace minerals that many sellers are proud of but in reality most are radio-active so be careful! Read the article and see the list of radioactive ingredients in the Himalayan salt at the link provided. Other salts have the same with varying degrees. Table salt is purified specifically to get rid of the radio-active materials.

So thirsty? Have some salt and then water. 

Comments are welcome.

Angela