I’ve been recommending adrenal cocktails to every single one of my clients right now, so I thought it was time to do an in depth review of what they are, why they’re beneficial, and how to make one. Because, while it’s hard to give blanket recommendations to people without knowing their history, one of the best things almost everyone can benefit from is an adrenal cocktail.
**Please note that nothing in this post is medical advice. Please speak with your health professional before making changes specific to your health needs. Changing intake of sodium and potassium can have implications on chronic conditions, including heart and kidney conditions. Some citrus foods, especially grapefruit, can have interactions with medications.**
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So what is an adrenal cocktail?
An adrenal cocktail, sometimes also called a mineral mocktail, is combination of sodium, potassium, and whole food vitamin C used to provide electrolyte support for our cells. Replenishing minerals promotes overall health and hormone balance in the body. Some recipes also include other nutrients like magnesium, boron, or protein via collagen. But to keep it simple, I like to stick with the core ingredients.
Sodium is necessary for optimal adrenal function and stress management. The first mineral that gets used up in stress is magnesium. And magnesium needs sodium. Sodium is also important for blood pressure regulation, stomach acid production, and insulin sensitivity.
Potassium works alongside sodium. Our kidneys manage the balance of sodium and potassium in our cells through a pump system. Without enough of one, our body will adjust the amount of the other that gets released for use. We need both of these minerals together.
Vitamin C helps with absorption of these nutrients. And specifically whole food vitamin C because ascorbic acid, or synthetic vitamin C, works completely differently in the body. We need the whole food form to get maximum benefit.
Why take an adrenal cocktail?
If you’re suffering from chronic fatigue, lack of energy or motivation, in a season of high stress, are marathon training, or feeling constantly run down, you probably need an adrenal cocktail.
Minerals are essential to all functions in our body. We need them for digestion, blood sugar balance, hormone production and regulation, recovery from workouts, liver function, adrenal function, and more.
And the very first things that get used up in stress are minerals.
When our sympathetic nervous system is activated and cortisol is high, minerals are released to help the body handle the stressor. This means we use up a lot of magnesium, sodium, potassium, specifically. To replenish these lost minerals so that our bodies can be ready for the next stressor, we need to be regularly eating foods high in these minerals. Which many of us don’t due to various reasons (farming practices make it harder to get enough magnesium, many of us are not eating enough in general, there is a lot of fear around sodium intake, etc).
A daily adrenal cocktail provides your adrenals what they need to function optimally, which helps to build a body that is more resilient to stress. This in turn benefits the nervous system, metabolism, thyroid, and liver.
How do you make an adrenal cocktail?
The simplest recipe is to mix equal parts orange juice (vitamin C) + coconut water (potassium) + 1/4 tsp sea salt (sodium). But you can mix and match from a number of foods with these nutrients in them.
Potassium sources: coconut water, aloe vera juice, or cream of tartar.
VItamin C sources: orange juice, lime juice, grapefruit juice, acerola cherry powder (there are many other whole food vitamin C sources, but when making a beverage that is drinkable and relatively low in calories, these are the best options to start).
Sodium sources: Redmond’s real salt or celtic sea salt. You want a raw, unprocessed, salt that still has natural minerals in it. We don’t want refined salt or iodized salt here.
You can absolutely make this into a meal by adding protein and fat to it. Collagen, protein powder, milk, or full fat canned coconut milk are all common additions. If I’m making a smoothie as a meal, I’m going to try to include a sodium, potassium, and vitamin C source.
However, some individuals may benefit from drinking 1-3 of these a day, depending on their metabolic and adrenal health. So we don’t want to be making all of our meals for the day into adrenal cocktails. A beverage that is just juice, water, and salt is going to be much easier to fit in between meals, first thing in the morning, or before bed. And we’re not drinking 24 oz of this. It shouldn’t be causing giant blood sugar spikes throughout the day.
Adrenal Cocktail Recipes
Here are a few sample recipe ideas:
- 4 oz orange juice + 4 oz coconut water + 1/4 tsp salt
- 1-2 oz lime juice + 6-8 oz coconut water + 1/4 tsp salt
- 4 oz grapefruit juice + 4 oz aloe vera juice + 1/4 tsp salt
- 8 oz water + 1 oz lime juice + 1/4 tsp cream of tartar + 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 oz grapefruit juice + 2 oz coconut water + 2 oz sparkling water + 1/4 tsp salt
I also personally love Jigsaw Health’s adrenal cocktail powder. It is sodium, potassium, and vitamin C from acerola cherry already mixed in a powder form. One scoop in 8 oz of water or juice and it’s ready to go. I personally mix with water and top with an ounce of orange juice to cut the salty taste a bit.
Mineral mixes such as Bumbleroot Foods hydration powder or Rayvi mineral drink mix are also good options, but you’ll want to add more salt to them as they are fairly low in sodium (to allow for personal preference and nutrient needs). These are also good options for people that want or need lower sodium intake. Though by ensuring adequate potassium alongside sodium, our bodies will be able to process and use both optimally. It is usually an excess of sodium without adequate potassium that leads to other health complications (PMID: 25016398).
When to Drink an Adrenal Cocktail
The best time to take an adrenal cocktail is anytime!
Though I usually recommend clients have one mid morning or midafternoon, around the time you would be reaching for a cup of coffee to keep you going. It’s also great first thing in the morning to replenish dehydrated cells after sleeping all night and can be a great addition to a bedtime routine alongside magnesium. Some people find them too stimulating before bed, but others find it helps them sleep more restfully (an adrenal cocktail alongside magnesium glycinate in the evenings can be especially helpful for those prone to restless leg syndrome or leg cramps at night).
If you give an adrenal cocktail a try, let me know! I’m always interested in hearing new recipes that people come up with for them or how they are using them in their day. And if you want to give Jigsaw Health’s adrenal cocktail powder a try, use code Darby10 at checkout for $10 off!
