How does your body respond to really high levels of electrolytes in the body?

An electrolyte is any of various ions, such as sodium, potassium, or chloride, required by cells to regulate the electric charge and flow of water molecules across the cell membrane.[1] They are largely minerals with electric charges that are dissolved in blood, cellular fluid or extracellular fluid and help to maintain nerve, muscle, acid-base balance and water balance in the body. [2]

Electrolytes are essential for basic life functioning, such as[2][3]:

• Maintaining electrical neutrality in cells
• Generating and conducting action potentials in the nerves and muscles.
• Essential for keeping your nervous system and muscles functioning.
• Ensuring that your body’s internal environment is optimal by keeping you hydrated and helping regulate your internal pH.
• Sodium, potassium, and chloride are the significant electrolytes along with magnesium, calcium, phosphate, and bicarbonates.

Electrolytes come from our food and fluids.

• These electrolytes can have an imbalance, leading to either high or low levels. High or low levels of electrolytes disrupt normal bodily functions and can lead to even life-threatening complications.[4]
• Most people meet their electrolyte needs through a balanced diet, though imbalance may occur if you’re dehydrated due to illness or excess heat.[5]

The term electrolyte means that this ion is electrically-charged and moves to either a negative (cathode) or positive (anode) electrode:

• Cations are positively charged
• Anions are negatively charged[5]

Electrolytes are important because they are what your cells (especially nerve, heart, muscle) use to maintain voltages across their cell membranes and to carry electrical impulses (nerve impulses, muscle contractions) across themselves and to other cells. Your kidneys work to keep the electrolyte concentrations in your blood constant despite changes in your body.

Eg. When you exercise heavily, you lose electrolytes in your sweat, particularly sodium and potassium. These electrolytes must be replaced to keep the electrolyte concentrations of your body fluids constant[5].

Indications to order serum electrolyte panel are numerous. Some of which include[4][6]:

• As a part of routine blood investigations
• For in-patients and ICU patients, the monitoring of serum electrolytes often occurs daily or more frequently as they can be affected by the medications, fluid therapy, diet changes, and illnesses.
• Any illness that can cause electrolyte derangement eg.malnutrition, gastrointestinal disorders, cardiac disorders, kidney dysfunction, endocrine disorders, circulatory disorders, lung disorders, acid-base imbalance
• Arrhythmias, cardiac arrest
• Use of diuretics or any medications that can interfere with fluid and electrolyte homeostasis

Sodium, Potassium. Chloride, Bicarbonate, Calcium and Phosphates are regarded as main electrolytes whose role aid in nerve excitability, body fluid buffering and transport of materials between the different body compartments.[3]

• Sodium (Na+)
  • An osmotically active anion, is one of the most important electrolytes in the extracellular fluid. It is responsible for maintaining the extracellular fluid volume, and also for regulation of the membrane potential of cells. Sodium is exchanged along with potassium across cell membranes as part of active transport.
• Among the electrolyte disorders, hyponatremia is the most frequent.

Potassium (K+)

• Mainly an intracellular ion. The sodium-potassium adenosine triphosphatase pump has the primary responsibility for regulating the homeostasis between sodium and potassium, which pumps out sodium in exchange for potassium, which moves into the cells.
• Potassium disorders are related to cardiac arrhythmias.

Calcium (Ca2+)

• Has a significant physiological role in the body.
• Involved in skeletal mineralization, contraction of muscles, the transmission of nerve impulse, blood clotting, and secretion of hormones.
• The diet is the predominant source of calcium. It is mostly present in the extracellular fluid.
• See also Hypercalcemia

Bicarbonate (HCO3-)

• The acid-base status of the blood drives bicarbonate levels.
• The kidneys predominantly regulate bicarbonate concentration and are responsible for maintaining the acid-base balance.
• Diarrhea usually results in loss of bicarbonate, thus causing an imbalance in acid-base regulation.

Magnesium (Mg2+)

• Magnesium is an intracellular cation.
• Magnesium is mainly involved in ATP metabolism, contraction and relaxation of muscles, proper neurological functioning, and neurotransmitter release.
• When muscle contracts, calcium re-uptake by the calcium-activated ATPase of the sarcoplasmic reticulum is brought about by magnesium.
• See also Hypomagnesemia

Chloride (Cl 1-)

• An anion found predominantly in the extracellular fluid.
• The kidneys predominantly regulate serum chloride levels.

Phosphorus (P)

• An extracellular fluid cation.
• Eighty-five percent of the total body phosphorus is in the bones and teeth in the form of hydroxyapatite; the soft tissues contain the remaining 15%.
• Phosphate plays a crucial role in metabolic pathways.
• It is a component of many metabolic intermediates and, most importantly of adenosine triphosphate(ATPs) and nucleotides[4].

Electrolyte and Ion Reference Values[3]NameChemical SymbolPlasmaCSFUrineSodiumNa+|136.00–146.00 (mM)138.00–150.00 (mM)40.00–220.00 (mM)PotassiumK+3.50–5.00 (mM)0.35–3.5 (mM)25.00–125.00 (mM)ChlorideCl-98.00–107.00 (mM)118.00–132.00 (mM)110.00–250.00 (mM)BicarbonateHCO3-22.00–29.00 (mM)CalciumCa2+2.15–2.55Up to 7.49 (mmol/day)PhosphateHPO4-0.81–1.4512.90–42.00 (mmol/day)

The most common electrolyte imbalances are in sodium and potassium. Electrolyte imbalances are referred to with the prefixes "hypo" (low) and "hyper" (high), combined with the scientific name of the electrolyte.

What does too much electrolytes feel like?

How does your body run out of electrolytes?