Do you have questions about how to keep your canine companions properly hydrated, especially when it comes to electrolytes? These essential minerals play a crucial role in your dog’s health, regulating everything from muscle function to hydration. But when do dogs need electrolyte replenishment, and how can we do it naturally?
When does your dog need electrolyte replenishment?
Dogs may need extra electrolytes after intense exercise, during hot weather, or when they’re experiencing vomiting or diarrhea. Senior dogs or those with certain health conditions might also benefit from electrolyte support. Always consult your vet if you’re unsure whether your pup needs electrolyte supplementation.
Water — the foundation of hydration
Before we get into specific electrolytes, let’s talk about the basics – water! Ensuring your dog has constant access to fresh, clean water is the first step in maintaining proper hydration and electrolyte balance. Some dogs prefer running water, so a doggy fountain might encourage more drinking.
Sodium and chloride as a salty duo
Sodium and chloride are key electrolytes often lost through sweating (yes, dogs do sweat, albeit minimally) and panting. While we don’t want to overdo the sodium, a pinch of sea salt in your dog’s water or food can help replenish these electrolytes naturally. Just remember, moderation is key!
Potassium lives in bananas
Potassium is another crucial electrolyte. Luckily, many dogs love bananas, a great natural source of potassium. Other dog-safe, potassium-rich foods include sweet potatoes, pumpkin, and watermelon (seeds removed, of course). These can be offered as occasional treats or mixed into your dog’s regular food.
Calcium is not just for bones
While we often think of calcium in terms of bone health, it’s also an important electrolyte. Plain, unsweetened yogurt is a great natural source of calcium that many dogs enjoy. Just be sure your pup isn’t lactose intolerant before offering dairy products.
Magnesium — your multitasking mineral
Magnesium plays a role in numerous bodily functions. Pumpkin seeds are a magnesium powerhouse and can be a healthy treat for dogs when unsalted and ground up. Leafy greens like spinach also contain magnesium, but introduce these gradually to avoid digestive upset.
Coconut water is nature’s sports drink
Coconut water is often touted as a natural electrolyte drink for humans, and it can benefit dogs too! It’s rich in potassium, calcium, and magnesium. Just make sure it’s pure coconut water without added sugars or flavors. Offer it in small amounts, especially if it’s new to your dog’s diet.
Bone broth as a nutrient and electrolyte powerhouse
Homemade bone broth is not only delicious for dogs but also packed with natural electrolytes and other nutrients. Simmer bones in water with a splash of apple cider vinegar to release the minerals. Let the broth cool, remove and discard the bones, skim off any fat, and offer small amounts to your pup.
Commercial options when natural isn’t enough
While natural sources are great, sometimes commercial electrolyte solutions designed for dogs are necessary, especially in cases of severe dehydration or illness. Be sure to speak to your vet before using these products.
Balance is key
While replenishing electrolytes naturally in dogs can be beneficial, it’s crucial not to overdo it. Too much of any electrolyte can be harmful. Always introduce new foods gradually and in moderation. If you’re concerned about your dog’s hydration or electrolyte balance, don’t hesitate to consult with your veterinarian.
Also remember that each dog is unique. Pay attention to your furry friend’s response to different foods and always prioritize their overall health and well-being.
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How do the nutrition and health effects of quinoa compare to other whole grains?
“Approximately 90% of the world’s calories are provided by less than one percent of the known 250,000 edible plant species.” The big three are wheat, corn, and rice, and our reliance on them may be unsustainable, given the ongoing climate crisis. This has spurred new interest in “underutilized crops,” like quinoa, which might do better with drought and heat.
Quinoa has only recently been introduced into the Northern Hemisphere, but humans have been eating quinoa for more than 7,000 years. Is there any truth to its “superfood” designation, or is it all just marketing hooey?
Quinoa is a “pseudograin,” since the plant it comes from isn’t a type of grass. “Botanically speaking quinoa is an achene, a seed-like fruit with a hard coat,” and it has a lot of vitamins and minerals, but so do all whole grains. It also has a lot of protein. As you can see below and in a series of graphs starting at 1:05 in my video Benefits of Quinoa for Lowering Triglycerides, quinoa has more protein than other grains, but since when do we need more protein? Fiber is what we’re sorely lacking, and its fiber content is relatively modest, compared to barley or rye. Quinoa is pretty strong on folate and vitamin E, though, and it leads the pack on magnesium, iron, and zinc. So, it is nutritious, but when I think superfood, I think of something with some sort of special clinical benefit. Broccoli is a superfood, strawberries are a superfood, and so is garlic, but quinoa? Consumer demand is up, thanks in part to “perceived health benefits,” and it has all sorts of purported benefits in lab animals, but there have been very few human studies.
The first trial was a before-and-after study of quinoa granola bars that showed drops in triglycerides and cholesterol, as you can see below and at 1:53 in my video, but it didn’t have a control group, so we don’t know how much of that would have happened without the quinoa. The kind of study I want to see is a randomized controlled trial. When researchers gave participants about a cup of cooked quinoa every day for 12 weeks, they experienced a 36 percent drop in their triglycerides. That’s comparable to what one gets with triglyceride-lowering drugs or high-dose fish oil supplements.
Which is better, regular quinoa or red quinoa? As you can see in the graph below and at 2:22 in my video, the red variety has about twice the antioxidant power, leading the investigators to conclude that red quinoa “might…contribute significantly to the management and/or prevention of degenerative diseases associated with free radical damage,” but it’s never been put to the test.
What about black quinoa? Both red and black quinoa appear to be equally antioxidant-rich, both beating out the more conventional white variety, as you can see in the graph below and at 2:46 in my video.
The only caveat I could find is to inform your doctor before your next colonoscopy or else they might mistake quinoa for parasites. As reported in a paper, a “colonoscopy revealed numerous egg-like tan-yellow ovoid objects, 2 to 3 mm in diameter, of unclear cause,” but they were just undigested quinoa.
For more on the superfoods I mentioned, check the related posts below.
Plant-based diets are put to the test for treating migraine headaches.
Headaches are one of the top five reasons people end up in emergency rooms and one of the leading reasons people see their doctors in general. One way to try to prevent them is to identify their triggers and avoid them. Common triggers for migraines include stress, smoking, hunger, sleep issues, certain foods (like chocolate, cheese, and alcohol), your menstrual cycle, or certain weather patterns (like high humidity).
In terms of dietary treatments, the so-called Father of Modern Medicine, William Osler suggested trying a “strict vegetable diet.” After all, the nerve inflammation associated with migraines “may be reduced by a vegan diet as many plant foods are high in anti-inflammatory compounds and antioxidants, and likewise, meat products have been reported to have inflammatory properties.” It wasn’t put to the test, though, for another 117 years.
As I discuss in my video Friday Favorites: Foods That Help Headache and Migraine Relief, among study participants given a placebo supplement, half said they got better, while the other half said they didn’t. But, when put on a strictly plant-based diet, they did much better, experiencing a significant drop in the severity of their pain, as you can see in the graph below and at 1:08 in my video.
Now, “it is possible that the pain-reducing effects of the vegan diet may be, at least in part, due to weight reduction.” The study participants lost about nine more pounds when they were on the plant-based diet for a month, as shown below, and at 1:22.
Even just lowering the fat content of the diet may help. Those placed on a month of consuming less than 30 daily grams of fat (for instance, less than two tablespoons of oil all day), experienced “statistically significant decreases in headache frequency, intensity, duration, and medication intake”—a six-fold decrease in the frequency and intensity, as you can see below and at 1:44 in my video. They went from three migraine attacks every two weeks down to just one a month. And, by “low fat,” the researchers didn’t mean SnackWell’s; they meant more fruits, vegetables, and beans. Before the food industry co-opted and corrupted the term, eating “low fat” meant eating an apple, for example, not Kellogg’s Apple Jacks.
Now, they were on a low-fat diet—about 10 percent fat for someone eating 2,500 calories a day. What about just less than 20 percent fat compared to a more normal diet that’s still relatively lower fat than average? As you can see below and at 2:22 in my video, the researchers saw the same significant drops in headache frequency and severity, including a five-fold drop in attacks of severe pain. Since the intervention involved at least a halving of intake of saturated fat, which is mostly found in meat, dairy, and junk, the researchers concluded that reduced consumption of saturated fat may help control migraine attacks—but it isn’t necessarily something they’re getting less of. There are compounds “present in Live green real veggies” that might bind to a migraine-triggering peptide known as calcitonin gene-related peptide, CGRP.
Drug companies have been trying to come up with something that binds to CGRP, but the drugs have failed to be effective. They’re also toxic, which is a problem we don’t have with cabbage, as you can see below and at 3:01 in my video.
Green vegetables also have magnesium. Found throughout the food supply but most concentrated in green leafy vegetables, beans, nuts, seeds, and whole grains, magnesium is the central atom to chlorophyll, as shown below and at 3:15. So, you can see how much magnesium foods have in the produce aisle by the intensity of their green color. Although magnesium supplements do not appear to decrease migraine severity, they may reduce the number of attacks you get in the first place. You can ask your doctor about starting 600 mg of magnesium dicitrate every day, but note that magnesium supplements can cause adverse effects, such as diarrhea, so I recommend getting it the way nature intended—in the form of real food, not supplements.
Any foods that may be particularly helpful? You may recall that I’ve talked about ground ginger. What about caffeine? Indeed, combining caffeine with over-the-counter painkillers, like Tylenol, aspirin, or ibuprofen, may boost their efficacy, at doses of about 130 mg for tension-type headaches and 100 mg for migraines. That’s about what you might expect to get in three cups of tea, as you can see below, and at 4:00 in my video. (I believe it is just a coincidence that the principal investigator of this study was named Lipton.)
Please note that you can overdo it. If you take kids and teens with headaches who were drinking 1.5 liters of cola a day and cut the soda, you can cure 90 percent of them. However, this may be a cola effect rather than a caffeine effect.
And, finally, one plant food that may not be the best idea is the Carolina Reaper, the hottest chili pepper in the world. It’s so mind-numbingly hot it can clamp off the arteries in your brain, as seen below and at 4:41 in my video, and you can end up with a “thunderclap headache,” like the 34-year-old man who ate the world’s hottest pepper and ended up in the emergency room. Why am I not surprised it was a man?
I’ve previously covered gingerand topicallavender for migraines. Saffron may help relieve PMS symptoms, including headaches. A more exotic way a plant-based diet can prevent headaches is by helping to keep tapeworms out of your brain.
Though hot peppers can indeed trigger headaches, they may also be used to treat them. Check out my video on relieving cluster headaches with hot sauce.
The white ash conversation has been positively insufferable. Heady bois and cannabis connoisseurs from coast to coast have been posting videos of their ash on Instagram for what feels like years now, indicating that they’re smoking top shelf product solely based on the color of the ash.
As much as I hate to disappoint, not only is white ash not an accurate metric of quality, it can be easily faked, gamed, cheated, duped and bamboozled using particular cultivation techniques, smoking methods, and as shown by recent court documents: adding small amounts of chalk to the rolling paper.
Recently unsealed documents from a years-long court battle between Republic Technologies LLC and BBK Tobacco & Foods, LLP revealed the ingredient lists used to make OCB Rolling Papers, including one particular additive that Big Tobacco has been familiar with for years which weed smokers might not be aware of: calcium carbonate.
Chalk-Infused Papers
Court documents from 2014 with regard to OCB rolling papers showed that varying amounts of calcium carbonate were used in some of their rolling papers, specifically the following: OCB No. 1 Single Wide, JOB Tribal King Size, OCB Slim, OCB Red 1 ¼, JOB Gold 1.25, OCB Organic Hemp 1-¼ and OCB Organic Hemp King Size Slim.
Snippet taken from court documents in the case of Republic Technologies LLC vs BBK Tobacco & Foods, LLP.
According to the National Institute of Health, calcium carbonate is an inorganic salt found all over the world in rocks like limestone as well as in the shells of many marine organisms and crustaceans. It’s the main ingredient in chalk, antacid medications like Tums, and as it turns out, it has also been used as a whitening pigment in cigarette rolling papers for decades. I was able to find three different patents, two of which date back to the 90’s, from tobacco companies including Phillip Morris all listing calcium carbonate as a way to make cigarette ash more “attractive.” A study by the Cooperation Centre for Scientific Research Relative to Tobacco describes how calcium carbonate can affect the color of ash:
“Generally, as the size of the precipitated calcium carbonate particle decreased, the ash became more cohesive. As the particle size decreased, the ash became slightly whiter until an optimal particle size was reached at about 0.3 microns,” the study said. “Further reductions in precipitated calcium carbonate size caused the ash to become grayer.”
Calcium carbonate is not necessarily a harmful substance to include in rolling papers, but the material safety data sheet of calcium carbonate does classify it as a potential respiratory tract irritant. A National Institute of Health study of autopsies in smokers versus non-smokers also found that the elemental components of calcium carbonate are found in the lungs of smokers but not in non-smokers, meaning it potentially leaves residual particles in the lungs.
“Potassium carbonate, sulfate, and chloride were not identified in any lung. The percentage of quartz was the same in both smoker and nonsmoker lungs,” the study said. “However, lungs from smokers contained a large percentage (average 23% of all particles) of particles composed of calcium, carbon, and oxygen (probably calcium carbonate) in all sample sites, whereas lungs from nonsmokers usually contained no such particles or only minute numbers (average 0.1%).”
Moving away from the ultra-sciency talk, cigarette companies have added calcium carbonate to their papers for years to make the ash whiter (please google Marlboro white ash ads and you’ll see this conversation goes all the way back to the 1950’s). Whether or not OCB papers are trying to gain the favor of weed smokers looking for white cannabis ash, I haven’t the foggiest idea, nor would I want to insinuate such a thing for fear of incurring a lawsuit I absolutely cannot afford. The point is that if a substance this common can be added to rolling papers, it would be very easy for an unscrupulous marketing team to use this knowledge to their advantage to sell more cannabis via using these particular papers in pre-rolls or to roll with when making smoking videos for the company Instagram, etc.
I Got a Fever, and the Only Prescription is More CalMag
It doesn’t stop there. I’ve been told by growers that you can also add greater concentrations of CalMag to flowering cannabis plants to achieve the white ash effect, which would make sense because CalMag is, somewhat redundantly, a mixture of calcium and magnesium. Calcium carbonate concentration is also, as far as I know, not included on any cannabis lab test COA, so there’s no concrete way for the consumer to tell if this method was utilized in the grow room. Again, not necessarily a harmful practice as far as I know but also not an accurate measure of quality.
You can also achieve the white ash effect by rolling and smoking the joint in a particular way, which I’ll describe for you now in an effort to illustrate that you can absolutely, positively fake this shit for Instagram: Roll a full eighth into a joint as tightly as possible without suffocating it (see Doja Pak rolling tutorial from First Smoke of the Day for further reference). Now go buy yourself one of those mini torches that crack smokers use to heat up their pipes, the sketchier looking the better. Torch the end of your joint evenly and slowly. If it catches fire, gently blow it out and continue torching for a minute or two until you have a nice even cherry. Now you’re gonna want to hold the joint upside down, very gently so that the smoke drifts upwards through your hands. Take a long, slow hit and return the joint to the upside down position. Rinse and repeat, torching more if necessary until you have a nice white ash pile. Take your picture, post it to Instagram and receive a well-deserved pat on the back from your CEO.
Granted, you need at least somewhat decent weed to achieve this effect even with the described method above. I will also fully admit I have never smoked a joint that burned completely black which I would describe as quality weed. The point I’m trying to make here is there are well-known schemes afoot to fool you into thinking you’re smoking good weed when that is not necessarily the case. Some people have purported that white ash is an indicator the cannabis was dried and cured properly, which has some truth to it because the moisture content of the flower needs to be within an ideal range to achieve a proper burn, but all the white ash really means is that the weed has burned completely, a process known as “carbonization.” An excerpt from “Whiteness of Cigarette Ash” written by Isao Kanai in 1959 (again, please note the date) explains further:
“The whiteness of cigarette ash plays an important role to the burning quality of cigarettes, and it is considered to be related with the degree of carbonization of organic materials, the combustion-zone temperature of cigarettes, and other complicated ‘combustion phenomena’ of Cigarettes,” the report said.
A cursory Google search will also populate about 50 different explanations from various tobacco clubs and tobacco companies explaining that white ash is related to combustibility and levels of calcium and magnesium in the soil the tobacco was grown in. The same can be said for cannabis.
Fire is in the Eye of the Beholder
So where does that leave us? Well, here’s where it’s gonna get a little subjective on my part. Quality cannabis ultimately comes down to user experience and user preference. There are certain markers that may suggest a particular batch of cannabis can be considered a quality product, but it’s a multi-faceted conversation. There is no single metric that can tell you if flower is good. It comes down to several key factors including, but not limited to: appearance, ash color, density, taste, smokability, cultivation methods (this is a lesser point but while I’m on the subject, the living soil versus salt-nutrients conversation is equally as pointless as the ash conversation), plant genetics, a proper dry and cure cycle and in my opinion the most important factor: effects. Individual microbiome, how one person’s body reacts to cannabis versus another’s, also plays a huge role.
What I will say, and I’m shamelessly stealing this point from our fearless leader Jon Cappetta, is that a better ash-related metric for quality weed is how the ash stacks up on itself (a metric also stolen from age-old tobacco-funded studies, I might add). If you can smoke most of the joint without the ash falling off (infused products don’t count), it means there’s a lot of resin in the flower causing it to stick together. If the ash is speckled or white on top of that, all the better. Oil ring to boot? Fugedaboutit.
There’s a certain threshold I think we can all agree on that flower has to reach to cross over from bad to mids but past that threshold, as we’ve all witnessed, we all start to argue as a community about mids versus fire and the conversation ultimately devolves into silly, unimportant metrics like “whose ash is whiter.” I think in general the key here is just awareness of what we’re consuming, and the knowledge that our own personal experience with the plant is all that really matters at the end of the day. Don’t let flashy Instagram videos or age-old Big Tobacco schemes fool you into consuming a particular brand or strain. Smoke what feels good to YOU and spread awareness wherever you can so we as a community can properly identify true fire. Past that, I only ask that we all stop arguing online about white ash because it makes the cannabis community look like a babbling gang of rabid hyenas.
