Sole Water: Recipe, Benefits, and Side Effects

Sole Water | How Much | Benefits | Fasting | Recipe | Side Effects

Sole water enjoys a reputation as an ancient remedy that can provide positive health effects.

Therefore, many people swear by this simple drink of salt and water daily. Let’s determine if these are just myths or if actual studies can support the claimed health benefits.

What Is Sole Water?

Sole is water completely saturated with natural salt.

However, it is not just a tiny amount of salt dissolved in water. Sole is water that has absorbed the maximum amount of natural salt. Hence, it cannot absorb any more salt.

Moreover, the term sole comes from the Latin sol, which means sun.

In most cases, natural pink Himalayan salt is used solely because, unlike other salts, it is not industrially processed and contains up to 84 minerals and trace elements.

Authentic Pink Himalayan Salt comes from the Khewra Salt Mine in Pakistan, near the Himalayan Mountains.

With this in mind, Himalayan salt is claimed to be made of the primal sea’s drained remains. Since it’s ancient, it cannot contain microplastics like conventional sea salt.

The drink promotes optimal ionic balance, better sleep, and weight loss.

Anyway, sodium, chloride, and potassium ions are necessary for our nerve cells’ function (Lodish et al. 2000¹).

Therefore, you cannot go wrong by drinking sodium chloride dissolved in water. Unlike ordinary soles, sole water made of Himalayan salt also contains potassium.

Is Sole Water Good for You?

We’ve been drilled for decades that salt is harmful. Therefore, the idea of drinking salt water may sound outlandish.

Nonetheless, we are yet to explore why the concentrated salt solution can have various benefits for health.

Contrary to popular belief, it is now a fact that residents of those who consume the most salt have minor cardiovascular incidents (Park et al. 2016²).

Moreover, a long-term study that followed over 7000 people for about 14 years states that as sodium consumption increases, the likelihood of dying from heart disease decreases (Cohen et al. 2006³).

For this reason, you must consume salt in enormous amounts and in a short time to have a dangerous effect on a healthy body.

Like temperature and fluid balance, the body also regulates salt intake. As long as the kidneys are healthy, they will keep the salt content in the body in balance.

Therefore, as soon as there is too little sodium in the body, the kidneys inhibit sodium release. Otherwise, neurons and muscles could not function properly.

If there is an excess, on the other hand, they excrete it through the urine.

How Much Sole Water to Drink a Day?

Although research now considers 3 to 6 grams of salt per day ideal, some health authorities still limit the daily sodium requirement to 2,300 milligrams, which is dangerously low.

According to a recent study, falling below 3 grams of sodium per day draws a much higher risk of dying from cardiovascular disease than exceeding 6 grams (Oparil 2014⁴).

Most sole water proponents recommend drinking one teaspoon of the salt-rich solution in a conventional glass of filtered water daily to reap various health benefits.

Converted, this is equivalent to about half a gram of sodium.

Accordingly, those who hardly consume sodium through food could consume up to 4 teaspoons of Sole Water a day.

Suppose the sole water is taken as an electrolyte donor during fasting, possibly even more. However, we’ll look at the details of this later.

Health Benefits of Sole Water

After sole water has been used for centuries as a natural remedy, it offers many benefits.

Although there are myths about it, some applications might be scientifically justifiable:

• Hydration: Electrolytes are essential to maintain fluid balance. Besides sodium, Himalayan salt can provide the highest natural potassium, magnesium, and calcium levels in salt (*).
  
• Muscle cramps: Magnesium, potassium, calcium, chloride, and sodium are essential for muscle contraction (Lambert et al. 2015⁵; Berend et al. 2012⁶). Himalayan sole water can provide all of these electrolytes.
  
• Blood vessels: Also, sodium and potassium are vital for the blood. If you don’t lack these electrolytes, blood can flow more easily through blood vessels. Therefore, too little sodium in the blood leads to heart failure, cirrhosis, or sepsis (Roumelioti et al. 2018⁷).
  
• Digestion: Sale water is used in natural medicine to harmonize the acid-base balance and stimulate gastric acid and other digestive juices.
  
• Energy: Soluble water may increase energy levels by neutralizing the pH value supported by the minerals and trace elements in Himalayan salt.
  
• Skin: A Himalayan Sole bath allows the skin to absorb minerals such as magnesium. Magnesium can thus enter the lymphatic system, relieve fibromyalgia, relax tissues, and contribute to healthy skin (Gröber et al. 2017⁸; Engen et al. 2015⁹).
  
• Detoxification: Through its antimicrobial properties, sole water can help the immune system fight off bacteria, viruses, and fungi (Wijnker et al. 2006¹⁰).
  
• Sleep: Sodium deficiency suppresses antidiuretic hormone production, which inhibits the urge to urinate during sleep. Therefore, drinking sole water helps you sleep through the night (Kjeldsen et al. 1985¹¹).
  
• Weight loss: While sugar increases insulin resistance and body fat, salt, as its natural antagonist, curbs cravings and improves insulin sensitivity (Sakuyama et al. 2016¹²).

Sole Water During Fasting

Drinking sole water can relieve the physical side effects of fasting in almost 90% of cases.

Sole water especially helps against headaches that are common when starting.

Since intermittent fasting 16/8 aims to empty glycogen stores to burn stored fat for energy, you lose plenty of water.

This results from the fact that carbohydrates are stored as glycogen in liver, kidney, and muscle cells. Each gram of glycogen binds 3 to 4 grams of water, leaving the body again during fasting.

Therefore, when fasting, those who do not drink and consume sodium appropriately will experience symptoms of the so-called keto flu, such as headaches and dizziness.

These physical symptoms are usually due to sodium and other electrolytes being flushed out along with the water.

Hence, sole water made of Himalayan salt combats all deficiencies at once by restoring fluids and essential electrolytes.

Benefits for Ketogenic Diets

Also, switching to a ketogenic diet, the body loses more water—the same effect as fasting is causing the well-known issue.

Before the human body can go into ketosis and tap into body fat for energy, it depletes glycogen stores, flushing out water and electrolytes, which may cause side effects.

Whereas you enter ketosis during fasting by abstaining from food, keto leads to this metabolic state by restricting carbohydrates while enhancing fat intake.

Since the storage hormone insulin blocks the enzyme that breaks down body fat, both keto, and intermittent fasting aim to reduce insulin levels (Meijssen et al. 2001¹³).

Therefore, both methods prevent insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes.

Also, the storage hormone insulin is responsible for retaining salt in the body (Brands et al. 2012¹⁴).

The kidneys flush out excess water and sodium during keto and intermittent fasting because of lower insulin levels. Therefore, sole water helps you feel good during this process.

However, Himalayan sole water provides all the essential electrolytes for healthy muscle function.

Sole Water Recipe

The recipe is pretty simple the only ingredients are pink Himalayan salt and water.

What you need beyond that is a glass jar with a matching lid. I assumed a filling amount of one liter or 34 fl oz to make the quantities as straightforward as possible.

Sole Water Side Effects

Since you only need water and pink Himalayan salt to make sole, it should not cause undesirable side effects in a healthy person who consumes it reasonably.

Nevertheless, you should note that the sole is a highly concentrated salt solution. If you do not portion sole in small amounts, such as teaspoons, you risk consuming it excessively.

Finally, you can get too much of a good thing.

The Takeaway

Although Himalayan salt is now touted on every corner, it is a healthy fad. Nonetheless, not all the health benefits attributed to sole are true or provable.

However, no question that drinking sole water can yield health benefits.

Especially against the background that new diet approaches such as intermittent fasting or keto require increased salt intake, sole water is a welcome addition.

Finally, salt consists of essential electrolytes our bodies need to function fully.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Is Sole water good for you?

Sole water is used in natural medicine to promote digestion. Also, it can help with weight loss, sleep, interval fasting, or the keto diet.

How do you drink sole water?

Mix about a teaspoon of the sole into a glass of filtered water to drink sole water.

Does sole water have electrolytes?

Yes, since salt is sodium chloride, any sole water contains sodium and chloride electrolytes. If you use Himalayan salt for sole, there will be even more electrolytes, such as potassium, magnesium, and calcium.

Is it OK to drink salt water everyday?

Drinking salt water daily is OK, as long as you don’t drink excessive amounts. See this article for details.

Studies

#1-7

¹Lodish H, Berk A, Zipursky SL, et al. Molecular Cell Biology. 4th edition. New York: W. H. Freeman; 2000. Section 21.2, The Action Potential and Conduction of Electric Impulses. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK21668/

²Park J, Kwock CK, Yang YJ. The Effect of the Sodium to Potassium Ratio on Hypertension Prevalence: A Propensity Score Matching Approach. Nutrients. 2016 Aug 6;8(8). doi: 10.3390/nu8080482. PubMed PMID: 27509520; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4997395.

³Cohen HW, Hailpern SM, Fang J, Alderman MH. Sodium intake and mortality in the NHANES II follow-up study. Am J Med. 2006 Mar;119(3):275.e7-14. doi: 10.1016/j.amjmed.2005.10.042. PubMed PMID: 16490476.

⁴Oparil S. Low sodium intake–cardiovascular health benefit or risk?. N Engl J Med. 2014 Aug 14;371(7):677-9. doi: 10.1056/NEJMe1407695. PubMed PMID: 25119614.

⁵Lambert H, Frassetto L, Moore JB, Torgerson D, Gannon R, Burckhardt P, Lanham-New S. The effect of supplementation with alkaline potassium salts on bone metabolism: a meta-analysis. Osteoporos Int. 2015 Apr;26(4):1311-8. doi: 10.1007/s00198-014-3006-9. Epub 2015 Jan 9. PubMed PMID: 25572045.

⁶Berend K, van Hulsteijn LH, Gans RO. Chloride: the queen of electrolytes?. Eur J Intern Med. 2012 Apr;23(3):203-11. doi: 10.1016/j.ejim.2011.11.013. Epub 2011 Dec 21. Review. PubMed PMID: 22385875.

⁷Roumelioti ME, Glew RH, Khitan ZJ, Rondon-Berrios H, Argyropoulos CP, Malhotra D, Raj DS, Agaba EI, Rohrscheib M, Murata GH, Shapiro JI, Tzamaloukas AH. Fluid balance concepts in medicine: Principles and practice. World J Nephrol. 2018 Jan 6;7(1):1-28. doi: 10.5527/wjn.v7.i1.1. Review. PubMed PMID: 29359117; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5760509.

#8-14

⁸Gröber U, Werner T, Vormann J, Kisters K. Myth or Reality-Transdermal Magnesium?. Nutrients. 2017 Jul 28;9(8). doi: 10.3390/nu9080813. Review. PubMed PMID: 28788060; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5579607.

⁹Engen DJ, McAllister SJ, Whipple MO, Cha SS, Dion LJ, Vincent A, Bauer BA, Wahner-Roedler DL. Effects of transdermal magnesium chloride on quality of life for patients with fibromyalgia: a feasibility study. J Integr Med. 2015 Sep;13(5):306-13. doi: 10.1016/S2095-4964(15)60195-9. PubMed PMID: 26343101.

¹⁰Wijnker JJ, Koop G, Lipman LJ. Antimicrobial properties of salt (NaCl) used for the preservation of natural casings. Food Microbiol. 2006 Oct;23(7):657-62. doi: 10.1016/j.fm.2005.11.004. Epub 2006 Jan 10. PubMed PMID: 16943065.

¹¹Kjeldsen SE, Os I, Forsberg G, Aakesson I, Skjøtø J, Frederichsen P, Fønstelien E, Eide I. Dietary sodium intake increases vasopressin secretion in man. J Clin Hypertens. 1985 Jun;1(2):123-31. PubMed PMID: 3915319.

¹²Sakuyama H, Katoh M, Wakabayashi H, Zulli A, Kruzliak P, Uehara Y. Influence of gestational salt restriction in fetal growth and in development of diseases in adulthood. J Biomed Sci. 2016 Jan 20;23:12. doi: 10.1186/s12929-016-0233-8. Review. PubMed PMID: 26787358; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4719732.

¹³Meijssen S, Cabezas MC, Ballieux CG, Derksen RJ, Bilecen S, Erkelens DW. Insulin mediated inhibition of hormone sensitive lipase activity in vivo in relation to endogenous catecholamines in healthy subjects. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2001 Sep;86(9):4193-7. doi: 10.1210/jcem.86.9.7794. PubMed PMID: 11549649.

¹⁴Brands MW, Manhiani MM. Sodium-retaining effect of insulin in diabetes. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol. 2012 Dec;303(11):R1101-9. doi: 10.1152/ajpregu.00390.2012. Epub 2012 Oct 3. Review. PubMed PMID: 23034715; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC3533616.