The best drink for staying hydrated (Hint: It’s NOT water or Gatorade)

If you exercise on a regular basis… and exercise hard enough to work up a sweat… then good for you! Regular physical activity is one of the biggest keys to a long, healthy life.

Not only will it keep your body physically strong and your weight in check, but it will also help destroy the fat cells that produce cancer-causing hormones.

And you don’t have to run a marathon or do super-strenuous exercise to reap these benefits. Exercise “snacking,” or engaging in small but frequent amounts of physical activity, can be just as effective.

However, if you are someone who runs, trains or does other physical activity where you sweat a lot, staying hydrated is always crucial.

And maybe you just spend a lot of time outside during the hot summer months — when dehydration can sneak up on you.

Even mild dehydration can harm your brain, joints, heart and other bodily systems more quickly than you’d imagine.

But what’s the best drink to replace those lost fluids?

The answer might surprise you.

Reach for the milk

When we perspire, it’s not just water that we’re losing.

That sweat contains sodium (that’s why sweat is salty). When you sweat, you’re also losing fats, amino acids and potassium.

When potassium levels get too low, you get muscle cramps. Over time, a potassium deficiency can put your heart at risk.

Obviously, it’s critical to replace those lost electrolytes and minerals quickly. But is water the drink of choice? Or is it Gatorade or other sports drinks that put those electrolytes right back into your system?

Two recent studies both found another drink that outperforms both of these.

Ben Desbrow, Associate Professor of Sports Nutrition at Griffith University in Australia, compared several varieties of milk with electrolyte-based drinks in terms of how well they helped athletes recover lost fluids.

“Milk is an ideal recovery beverage,” says Desbrow. “It is well retained and is a great source of protein, carbohydrate, vitamins, and minerals.”

Desbrow’s comment underscores an important fact.

Not only is it important that electrolytes, minerals and fluids are replaced by drinking, but also that your body retains them. And it seems that the nutritional components of milk help with that retention.

A way to measure which drink is best

A 2016 study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition took this a step further.

The researchers set out to establish an index, which they called the Beverage Hydration Index (BHI). It compared the volume of urine output resulting from drinking each of the fluids.

To their surprise, both whole-fat and skim milk outperformed all other drinks, including water and sports drinks.

Have a little snack with that drink!

Ben Desbrow has a solution for those who don’t drink milk.

The important thing, he says, is getting some nutrients along with your water or other fluid of choice. Milk provides these nutrients, but so does a snack.

Related: Tired of water? This thirst quencher has extra benefits

Having a little food with your drink can help your body absorb and retain more fluid in a shorter period of time. Include a granola bar or a sandwich along with your water or other drink.

In fact, researchers from several Australian universities found that if you snack as part of rehydrating, it matters very little what drink you choose. Surprising, eh?

Choose your foods wisely

Foods that have a balance of carbohydrates and protein are best to help your body absorb fluids.

Foods like:

• A granola bar
• A sandwich with meat or cheese
• Brown rice with chicken
• A peanut butter sandwich and a glass of milk

And of course, fruits like watermelon, strawberries, cantaloupe and peaches are great sources of water all by themselves.

Sources:

1. You Asked: What’s the Best Way to Rehydrate—Besides Drinking Water? — Time
2. A randomized trial to assess the potential of different beverages to affect hydration status: development of a beverage hydration index — The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
3. Comparing the rehydration potential of different milk-based drinks to a carbohydrate-electrolyte beverage — Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism
4. Fluid, energy and nutrient recovery via ad libitum intake of different fluids and food — Physiology & Behavior