HOW TO MONITOR YOUR MINERAL BALANCE

Monitoring mineral balance is essential for overall health, as minerals play a vital role in keeping the body in good condition. To ensure that your mineral balance is healthy, it is important to watch your diet and hydration, observe signs of mineral imbalance, and test for minerals.

Start with diet

Creating a balanced diet with a wide variety of foods is the first step to make sure that you are getting all the necessary minerals. Pay attention to the foods you eat on a daily basis and if you notice them changing from what you planned, it may be time to realign your diet. Food tracking can help keep you on track and also get an idea of the total minerals you consume. Drinking enough water, especially if you are exercising and sweating heavily, is also vital. To check your hydration, look at the color of your urine. If it is mostly clear, it is a good sign that you are hydrated. This habit is especially important to maintain prior to sleep as we naturally dehydrate over those 8 hours.

Listen to your body

Signs of mineral imbalance, such as fatigue, soreness, and poor sleep, can appear quickly and should be monitored regularly. If these symptoms increase, but are not related to an increase in exercise intensity, it could mean that you are deficient in minerals. To address this, increase your intake of key minerals, such as sodium, potassium, magnesium, zinc, calcium, and chloride, through diet and supplementation. If symptoms persist, reducing exercise intensity may be necessary.

Get a test

For a more precise understanding of your mineral balance, testing may be necessary. Sweat patch tests and blood tests are the most informative tests to get an accurate picture of your body's mineral balance and how much you deplete during exercise. The sweat test will give you an idea of the amount of sodium and potassium you lose through sweat, while a blood test will provide a wider view of your mineral content. However, it is rare for major mineral imbalances to show up in your blood, as the body prioritizes maintaining a minimum level. It maintains this by pulling minerals from elsewhere in the body such as muscles and bones. This may seem fine, however, a serious imbalance in minerals may not show up as that on the tests.

To sum up, monitoring your mineral balance is essential for maintaining good health and well-being. By following a balanced diet, monitoring symptoms, and testing for minerals, you can be sure that your body is functioning at its best.