Liquid I.V.'s Science, Explained
What’s the science behind Liquid I.V.? Since the launch of our original product, Hydration Multiplier, we've garnered over 10,000 5-star reviews online and sold over 100 million servings worldwide. So why do people love Liquid I.V. so much? Because it works!
Below, we delve into what makes Liquid I.V. so uniquely effective at delivering hydration and wellness ingredients rapidly into your bloodstream. Read on for a layperson’s translation of our science!
Oral Rehydration Solutions
Liquid I.V. follows the guidelines set down by the World Health Organization (WHO) for Oral Rehydration Solution, or ORS. ORS is the general term for a liquid mixture with a very specific ratio of sodium and glucose. The formula is extraordinary because it has been proven to allow increased absorption of water into the bloodstream. Generally used in cases of extreme dehydration, ORS has been adopted by the WHO as a quick, relatively inexpensive way to save lives. It has been tested extensively for over 50 years (see below for a link to one of many studies on ORS) and has been proven to be highly effective at optimizing hydration. While our products are not medical formulas, and are designed to be used daily, they are Oral Rehydration Solutions.
Liquid I.V. Medical Director, Dr. Brad Thomas
Now, a traditional ORS can save lives, but it also contains preservatives and tends to taste pretty heinous. Liquid I.V. gave ORS a makeover by making it taste delicious and adding extra vitamins and nutrients without using artificial ingredients—all while using that same essential ratio of sodium and glucose. LIV can also transport nutrients in addition to water into the bloodstream, whereas ORS only delivers water. But we’ll get to that later.
So how exactly does ORS’s ratio provide more hydration than water alone? Read on for more science.
How it Works
Sodium and glucose have an “in” at the small intestine—it’s relatively easy for them to pass through and move on to the bloodstream from there. Water, however, isn’t so lucky. Water typically travels through the entire digestive system including the stomach, the small intestine, and the large intestine before getting into the bloodstream. Thus, alone, water takes much longer to eventually get to the bloodstream, and a lot of it turns to waste before it can even get there. The beauty of ORS is the sodium-glucose-water bond: they totally have each other’s backs. When water enters the body with its buddies sodium and glucose (in a very specific ratio), it piggybacks on its friends to pass through the small intestine and right into the bloodstream.
Boom! Once sodium and glucose make it possible for water to take a shortcut into the bloodstream on a cellular level, that water becomes available to hydrate your body. Thanks, sodium and glucose!
Where Does CTT® Come in?
Our proprietary Cellular Transport Technology (CTT®) builds upon the science of ORS. When we created our product, we discovered that we could utilize ORS’s special sodium-glucose delivery system and use it to get nutrients in addition to water into the bloodstream just as quickly and effectively. This is CTT®. We introduced key wellness ingredients (like those in Sleep Multiplier and Energy Multiplier, which are often difficult to absorb) into our formulas and found they were also absorbed much more efficiently—just like water in an ORS solution. It was a revolutionary discovery for us, and for people with active lifestyles all over the world.
Here’s an example of just how exciting it was: when the bicycle first became available, people were thrilled—now they could get from place to place much faster and with much less effort than walking. But then the automobile was invented, and the game was officially changed. The scale of distance, comfort and convenience that was available to people became much larger. People could now carry not just themselves, but other things like food, materials and other people, across vast distances. There was nothing wrong with the bicycle, but now the car was the best way to travel! Now, think of ORS as a bicycle, and think of CTT® as the newly-invented engine of the car, able to carry and deliver more items to its final destination—with a lot more comfort to boot.
Wellness experts are on board. “Cellular Transport Technology® is a groundbreaking way to get nutrients into the body,” says Liquid I.V. Medical Director, world-renowned orthopedic surgeon Dr. Brad Thomas, M.D. “We have all these products on the market that contain great nutritional ingredients—if the body could only absorb them properly. CTT® tackles this problem head-on, and it’s already changing the way things are done in the wellness industry.”
All Liquid I.V. products utilize CTT®, so stay tuned for exciting future life-hacking line extensions!
Super into all this science? Below is a study on oral rehydration solutions, for further reading:
UNICEF-WHO report, “Reduced Osmolarity, Oral Rehydration Solution (ORS) Formulation,” 2001
Plus, check out our article on ORS.
Still have questions? Feel free to reach out to info@liquid-iv.com.
Written by: Samantha Colicchio, Liquid I.V. Brand Storyteller
