Everyone’s obsessed with pickle juice, especially athletes, and as crazy as it sounds, there might be some truth behind pickle juice’s health benefits.
Although drinking lots of briny pickle juice is not recommended, small amounts can be quite helpful. Here are 8 benefits of pickle juice that will make you want to drink some ASAP.
Pickle juice is excellent against muscle cramps
Vinegar in pickle juice can reduce muscle pain interacting with the nervous system, while electrolytes in the juice can reduce cramps during and after workout. This rapid pain relief is extraordinary, but pickle juice can even prevent cramps if drank before and during training.
Although the exact cause of muscle cramps is unknown, it’s commonly seen in people with a poor physical condition, low muscle tone, and fatigued muscles.
Pickle Juice keeps you hydrated
As you work out, you lose water in your sweat and can get dehydrated, causing fatigue, sugar cravings, high blood pressure, and the development of kidney stones. Water is the obvious choice to recover from dehydration, but you need more than water; you need sodium and potassium salts, called electrolytes.
Pickle juice has concentrated amounts of salts, and small amounts can replenish your water levels in minutes. This is the main reason professional athletes have been using pickle juice for years.
Pickle juice is cheap
245.56 million Americans eat pickles, and for most of them, pickle juice is waste. This means when you use pickle juice to hydrate yourself and prevent cramps, you’re putting fair use to something that would go to the drain. Pickle juice is amazingly cheap, costing a fraction of what regular energy or sports drink costs.
For a low-cost hydrating drink, it’s hard to believe something better priced will ever hit the market.
Pickle juice adds little calories to your diet
Unlike most sports drinks, which have electrolytes but also tons of sugar, pickle juice has no sugar and has virtually zero calories. That makes the briny juice the perfect drink when working out, primarily if you aim to lose weight.
Low carb hydrating sports drinks are rare, and when you find one as efficient as pickle juice, it’s hard to see why you’d look for something else.
Pickle juice is a great antioxidant source
Pickle juice is more than an acidic, salty liquid. Since it holds pickles, it has an amazing number of nutrients. Great amounts of vitamin E and C add lots of health benefits to the brine; they strengthen your immune system and protect your body from scavenging free radicals responsible for oxidative stress that could lead to cancer and other diseases.
Vitamins and electrolyte minerals, acid, and lots of flavor. What more can you ask for?
Vinegar in pickle juice can boost your metabolism
Drinking moderate amounts of vinegar, like the one found in pickle juice, can help your body burn fat faster and burn calories, effectively aiding in weight loss.
Drinking too much vinegar can damage your teeth and cause digestive discomfort, so don’t overdo it. A few teaspoons of pickle juice could be enough to complement your weight loss program.
Pickle juice could help you control your blood sugar levels
Studies have shown consuming pickle juice in moderation can reduce and help control blood sugar levels, especially for the vinegar. Drink it before meals for the best results.
High blood sugar levels can lead to type 2 diabetes, weight gain, and even heart conditions. Although vinegar might help with that, avoid consuming large amounts of sugar and other simple carbs.
Pickle Juice is good for your breath
Contrary to what you might believe, consuming pickle juice can eliminate bad breath. Both vinegar and dill, an aromatic herb present in the brine, have antibacterial properties. Bacteria in the mouth are responsible for bad breath, so keeping them in check is a good way of preventing unpleasant breath.
You learn something every day, right?
Who knew pickle juice could be so cool? And pickles are not far behind; they’re salty, tangy, and delicious, so eat your pickles but don’t throw away that pickle brine.
If you can’t save your own brine, you’ll be happy to know many companies now sell the salty liquid, so get your hands on some pickle brine and make the most out of it.
Share this information with your gym buddies, they might think you’re crazy, but you’ll all soon be enjoying the benefits behind the unusual liquid. Try it, and you’ll never go back to Gatorade.
