Electrolytes on LCHF: salt, potassium, magnesium

Because water is being lost. Glycogen holds onto fluid, and when the supply is used up, that fluid is excreted along with the salts dissolved in it.

This is not a breakdown or a side effect, but a direct consequence of what the whole process started for. That is why swelling goes down in the first week—and for the same reason, sluggishness appears if salt is not replenished.

Based on a combination of symptoms, not just one.

A headache on the second or third day, unexplained sluggishness, dizziness when standing up quickly, a feeling of “cotton-wool” legs, and cravings for salty foods. If you are eating and drinking normally at the same time, the problem is most likely salt.

The check is simple: salt your food normally and add a cup of warm broth. If you feel noticeably better within an hour, that was the issue.

Because “just in case” is not an indication.

Electrolytes work together, and adding one at random changes the balance of the others. Excess potassium is dangerous with kidney disease. Excess sodium is dangerous with hypertension and heart disease. High doses of magnesium cause diarrhea, which dehydrates you—in other words, exactly the opposite result.

So the order is: first eat and drink properly, then assess how you feel, and only after that consult a doctor and take supplements if they recommend them.

A guideline of about two liters of fluid per day. More in hot weather and on training days. With kidney or heart disease, the amount is determined by a doctor.

An important combination: drinking lots of water while strictly limiting salt is a poor combination in the first weeks. It is most often this that causes the weakness attributed to “keto flu.”

The guideline of 3-5 g of salt does not apply to people with arterial hypertension, heart failure, or kidney disease—the amount of sodium for them is determined by a doctor.

With chronic kidney disease, potassium may need to be restricted, and “eat more avocado and leafy greens” is not universal advice here. During pregnancy and breastfeeding, this regimen should not be started independently.

With a cup of warm broth. This is the simplest way: it is salty, warm, and quick to drink.

The second option is salted vegetables: sauerkraut, olives, and pickles without sugar in the ingredients. They count toward your total sodium intake and also cover the vegetable portion of the plate.

What you do not need is to buy special electrolyte powders if you simply do not salt your food enough. Regular salt in food solves the same problem and costs next to nothing.

The guideline of 3-5 grams of salt per day is approximately half to one level teaspoon, counting all the salt consumed during the day.

An important point: this includes not only the salt you add, but also the salt in cheese, sauerkraut, olives, and prepared foods. So “adding a full teaspoon on top” is incorrect.

If you eat a lot of cheese and salted vegetables, you may need almost no additional salt.

Usually, yes. Active fluid and salt loss occurs in the first weeks, while glycogen is being used up.

After that, the water-and-salt balance levels out, and you no longer need to monitor salt specifically—simply salt food to taste as usual.

If weakness and dizziness persist for more than a month, the issue is most likely not electrolytes but the amount of food or something you should show to a doctor.