Breastfeeding and Electrolyte Hydration Solutions: Genuine Benefit or Marketing?

If you go to the pharmacy, you'll see effervescent tablets prominently displayed on end-caps, designed to flavor your water and provide electrolytes, promising better hydration.During heatwaves, when everyone is worried about possible dehydration — and even more so with a small baby while breastfeeding — this can be reassuring. And indeed, several breastfeeding-specific supplement brands offer breastfeeding-specific hydration solutions.So: do these electrolyte hydration solutions have real benefit, particularly for breastfeeding women?

A reminder on dehydration

Dehydration refers to a lack of water and mineral salts in the body, both essential for the body to function properly. Water is the main constituent of the human body.

The average amount of water contained in an adult body is around 60%.

The total water content of the human body depends on:

• body composition: the leaner a person is, the higher the proportion of water in their body;

• age: the proportion of water in the body decreases with age.

As tissues age, they lose water, which is replaced by fat.

Water thus represents:

• 75 to 80% of a newborn's weight,

• 65% of an infant over one year old's weight,

• 60% of an adult's weight.

The human body cannot store water, as it is constantly eliminated, mainly through urine, breathing, and especially sweating. To keep the body healthy, water losses must always be compensated by intake (primarily through diet, with adequate fluid consumption). (Ameli)

In certain situations, water and mineral salt losses can become excessive, for example: illness (diarrhea, vomiting, fever), excessive sweating from intense physical exertion or heatwaves.

Signs of dehydration:

In cases of mild dehydration:in older children and adults, this includes:

• a sensation of thirst, dry lips, reduced urination,

slight weight loss (<5%), and fatigue with dizziness, lightheadedness, and a dull-looking gaze.

• In cases of severe dehydration: weight loss exceeds 5% of the person's total body weight. When this weight loss exceeds 10%, the proper functioning of vital organs (heart, blood vessels, liver, brain, etc.) may be compromised.

• Besides weight loss, severe dehydration is accompanied by one or more of the following signs:intense thirst with a dry mouth and tongue;a dull gaze and sunken eyes;dry, cold, pale skin with the appearance of a skin fold (when gently pinched, the skin is slow to return to its original shape);fever;small amounts of dark, strong-smelling urine;headaches;disorientation, dizziness, or even altered consciousness (faintness, lightheadedness...);behavioral changes (agitation, apathy, extreme weakness...)

  
  

Note: signs differ in elderly people and infants.

Treatment of dehydration

Severe dehydration is a medical emergency and must be handled by emergency services.

In cases of moderate dehydration, particularly with diarrhea, oral rehydration solutions are recommended, containing water, alkalinizing agents (citrates or bicarbonates), carbohydrates, and electrolytes (sodium, potassium, chloride), according to a well-defined formula.

The presence of sodium and glucose promotes the digestive absorption of sodium and thus of water (maintaining sodium-glucose co-transport during diarrhea). Electrolytes compensate for losses. Carbohydrates, which give the solution most of its osmolarity, provide energy while also improving the taste and acceptability of the solution.These rehydration solutions can even be made at home: with water, orange juice, and salt. (

Preventing dehydration

During a heatwave, to prevent dehydration, recommendations from the AMELI website are to drink regularly and not wait until you feel thirsty. It is advised to consume at least 1.5 to 2 liters of water daily to maintain normal urinary output, and possibly gelled water if drinking water is difficult.

The Ameli website (French Health government resource) recommends favoring moderately mineralized water, avoiding alcohol consumption (as it reduces the body's ability to cope with heat and promotes dehydration), and also avoiding drinks high in caffeine (coffee, tea, cola) or very sugary drinks (sodas), as they increase urine secretion. It is also important to eat sufficient amounts of food, even if appetite is reduced due to the heat: foods rich in water help with hydration, for example fruits and vegetables, raw vegetables, cold soups, etc.

Heatwaves: an opportunity for selling hydration solutions

Oral rehydration solutions, vital pharmaceutical products used in cases of dehydration, are now formulated into everyday consumer products and repurposed to help the general population drink more water and "hydrate better" through fruit-flavored solutions.

Previously reserved for athletes during intense exertion, and evaluated as such by the European Food Safety Authority in 2011 (5), they are now marketed for any occasion... including heatwaves.

You'll thus find effervescent tablets or powder sachets of electrolytes promising to "hydrate you better," "support your concentration," "support your muscle recovery," and "support your metabolism." Manufacturers even promise better skin and less fatigue.

These solutions are even repurposed as a "hangover cure" by people who drink alcohol (alcohol promoting dehydration).

But these solutions are not without risks:

• in cases of kidney disorders or diabetes, adverse effects (particularly cardiac) due to an inappropriate electrolyte intake that will not be properly eliminated.

• sodium intake may promote high blood pressure

• sweeteners contained in these solutions may promote diabetes and alter the gut microbiome

In 2024, Quebec's poison control center reported in an article an increase in adverse event reports related to these electrolytes, compared to 2020.

The hydration solutions industry was valued at $38.4 billion in 2024: a market benefiting from intense marketing for benefits that are not proven.Inserm states that these electrolyte-enriched drinks may be useful during intense and prolonged exertion (since electrolytes are lost through sweating), but should not be used outside of this context.

However, even in the context of sport, Inserm (French research Centre) notes that "their benefits are increasingly being questioned, as some studies with a small number of participants have shown that, even during endurance events like triathlons, athletes manage to maintain normal blood sodium levels without any particular supplementation."

Breastfeeding and Electrolyte Hydration Solutions

Now, "breastfeeding-specific solutions" are appearing on the market. They contain, for example, coconut water, magnesium, potassium, sodium, and chloride, and are supposed to support fluid intake and reduce fatigue. And with some sellers, you'll even find claims that you will hydrate better and that your milk supply will improve.

What are the fluid needs during breastfeeding?

When breastfeeding, from one month onward, women produce an average of 780 ml of milk per day.

Water needs are increased, but it is generally recommended to drink to thirst: keeping a water bottle nearby during feeds is a good option.

This generally corresponds to about one extra liter of water beyond the usual daily recommendations (which are 1.5 to 2L/day), which can be consumed as herbal teas, tea, soups, etc.

In 2010, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) proposed a daily water intake of 3.3 liters for breastfeeding women.

These recommendations are theoretical, based on the physiological needs expected for milk production. Animal studies have shown changes in kidney function during lactation, allowing water and salt retention in cases of fluid restriction. Additionally, oxytocin secretion during feeds may have an antidiuretic effect. Several studies thus show that breastfeeding women consume less water than recommended (54% of breastfeeding women in a study in Mexico City, and the same figure in Indonesia).

The article by Mazul et al reports several studies: it has not been demonstrated that increasing fluid intake improves lactation.

To avoid the risk of dehydration in breastfeeding women, it is suggested to inform them about urine color: pale yellow urine is expected when well hydrated, while dark, strong-smelling urine indicates insufficient fluid intake.

Conclusion

Breastfeeding is now more recognized, visible, and valued in our society. But this new visibility also attracts a share of marketing around products whose usefulness remains to be demonstrated, and is sometimes even questionable.Yet breastfeeding mothers do not need hydration solutions, special herbal teas, or galactagogue energy bars to feel less tired or to produce enough milk.What mothers (breastfeeding or not) really need is support from society: maternity leave that matches the stakes involved (4 to 5 months remains insufficient), and solid structural welcome and support. This means facilitating breastfeeding in public places, support that extends beyond 6 months, reimbursement of lactation consultations, sufficient childcare places with qualified and fairly paid staff, family-friendly facilities in public transport, etc.

Bibliography

• Ameli website: dehydration

• Inserm. Super-hydrating electrolyte drinks, really?

• Future Market Insights. The supplements market. 2024La revue du praticien: Oral rehydration solutions.

• European Food Safety Authority EFSA. Scientific Opinion on the substantiation of health claims related to carbohydrate-electrolyte solutions and reduction in rated perceived exertion/effort during exercise (ID 460, 466, 467, 468), enhancement of water absorption during exercise (ID 314, 315, 316, 317, 319, 322, 325, 332, 408, 465, 473, 1168, 1574, 1593, 1618, 4302, 4309), and maintenance of endurance performance (ID 466, 469) pursuant to Article 13(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006. 2011.

• Le Devoir. Fears of intoxication from mineral or electrolyte supplements are multiplying. 2025

• Mazur D, Rekowska AK, Grunwald A, Bień K, Kimber-Trojnar Ż, Leszczyńska-Gorzelak B. Impact of Maternal Body Composition, Hydration, and Metabolic Health on Breastfeeding Success: A Comprehensive Review. Med Sci Monit. 2024 Oct 31;30:e945591. doi: 10.12659/MSM.945591. PMID: 39478297; PMCID: PMC11536699.

• Quebec. Rehydrating during gastroenteritis