For this reason, athletes and other active persons must be sure to consume adequate water for optimal performance. But it's even more basic than that. It can make the difference between feeling great or drained after exercise. At one time, athletes were advised to take salt tablets to avoid salt depletion. However, experts now recommend consuming salty foods or sports drinks formulated to provide sodium as well as other nutrients.
Sodium naturally present in water also helps to replace that lost through perspiration.
While disease from untreated water is virtually nonexistent in the United States today, other countries continue to be plagued by devastating epidemics related to contaminated water. In a little more than a year, the current Peruvian epidemic spread to 16 other countries in Latin America, causing about 600,000 cases of cholera and 5,000 deaths. The failure to disinfect water supplies has been repeatedly implicated as a major contributing factor to the spread of disease. But it is obvious from the health statistics of Latin America that the microbial risk is several orders of magnitude greater. Still scientists are examining various alternatives to chlorination.