THE SCIENCE OF HYDRATION
"When it comes to human health and performance hydration is second only to oxygen."
—Dr. Dolhun, Founder of DripDrop
60 YEARS
of foundational hydration science
TWO
clinically-validated absorption pathways
PRECISE
electrolyte levels, ratios, and osmolarity for fast hydration
90%
of top pro and college sports teams use DripDrop
PRECISE HYDRATION FORMULA
DRIPDROP'S FAST ABSORBING
TECHNOLOGY
THE SCIENCE OF FAST HYDRATION
THREE THINGS MUST BE TRUE SIMULTANEOUSLY
DripDrop is built to satisfy all three.
OPTIMAL SODIUM CONCENTRATION
Sodium is the primary electrolyte lost in sweat. It's also essential for fast absorption.
When paired with glucose or amino acids, it activates a co-transport mechanism pulling fluid into the bloodstream quickly and efficiently. But it only works within a specific range.
Too little, and the system is underdriven.
Too much, and there's no active pathway to move it into your bloodstream.
That’s why DripDrop is calibrated to
the optimal range defined by the
World Health Organization's (WHO)
Oral Rehydration Solution (ORS).
PRECISE SODIUM-TO-GLUCOSE (OR AMINO ACID) RATIO
Sodium alone isn't enough. It needs a partner to activate absorption.
Glucose and amino acids each trigger co-transport systems that quickly pull fluid into the bloodstream.
But the ratio matters. Too much glucose or amino acids relative to sodium slows absorption. Hydration works fastest when the balance is controlled and precise.
HYPOTONIC OSMOLARITY
Osmolarity is a measure of how concentrated a solution is. The more particles—electrolytes, sugars, amino acids—the higher the osmolarity. In hydration science, everything is relative to your blood.
For fluid to move efficiently into the bloodstream, a drink needs to be hypotonic (less concentrated than your blood). Above that threshold, absorption slows as the body works against the solution.
Many hydration products are hypotonic, but lower osmolarity alone doesn’t guarantee fast hydration. Without Principles #1 and #2 above, the body can’t maximize rapid fluid absorption.
DRIPDROP FORMULAS SATISFY ALL THREE PRINCIPLES SIMULTANEOUSLY.
Here's the science behind how each one does it—and why the mechanism differs
between Original and Zero Sugar Plus.
HOW DRIPDROP HYDRATES YOU
TWO FORMULAS.
TWO PATHWAYS.
ONE PRINCIPLE.
SODIUM-GLUCOSE CO-TRANSPORT VIA SGLT1
-
GLUCOSE + SODIUM BIND
SGLT1 transporters latch onto sodium ions and glucose simultaneously.
-
CO-TRANSPORT ACTIVATES
The transporter carries both molecules across the intestinal wall into the bloodstream.
-
WATER FOLLOWS OSMOTICALLY
The movement creates an osmotic gradient that pulls water through rapidly.
-
ELECTROLYTES REPLENISH
Sodium, potassium, zinc, and magnesium restore what sweat (or illness) depleted.
CO-TRANSPORT PARTNER: Sugar — the basis of WHO Oral Rehydration Therapy since the 1960s, calibrated to activate sodium-glucose co-transport while maintaining 216 mOsm/L hypotonic osmolarity.
SODIUM-AMINO ACID CO-TRANSPORT VIA GLYCINE
-
GLYCINE + SODIUM BIND
Sodium-amino acid transporters latch onto sodium and glycine—an amino acid with its own independent co-transport pathway.
-
CO-TRANSPORT ACTIVATES
Same osmotic principle as SGLT1, different transporter protein.
-
WATER FOLLOWS OSMOTICALLY
Identical outcome: rapid water absorption driven by the sodium gradient.
-
ELECTROLYTES REPLENISH
Sodium, potassium, zinc and magnesium restore what sweat (or illness) depleted without any sugar.
CO-TRANSPORT PARTNER: Glycine (2g per 16 oz)—validated in WHO expanded ORS research as a glucose independent co-transport partner.
CLINICAL EVIDENCE
OUR OWN STUDY—
NOT JUST BORROWED
SCIENCE
Any brand can cite the WHO ORS literature. DripDrop went further. An independent peer-reviewed clinical trial tested the DripDrop ORS formula head-to-head against a leading sports drink and water.
WHAT THE STUDY CONFIRMS
Efficacy of Ingesting an Oral Rehydration Solution after Exercise on Fluid Balance and Endurance Performance
study design
Randomized crossover trial. 9 trained male cyclists. Each participant completed all three conditions (DripDrop, sports drink, water).
PROTOCOL
75 min cycling at 65% VO₂ peak in heat (30°C, 76% humidity), 5h recovery, then a 20 km cycling time trial.
Rehydration Volume
150% of sweat loss provided over 2h—standard protocol for post-exercise rehydration assessment.
WHAT WAS MEASURED
Urine output, fluid retention, serum sodium, osmolality, aldosterone, ADH, blood glucose, core temperature, and 20 km time trial performance.
DRIPDROP USERS RETAINED 34 POINTS MORE FLUID THAN WATER ALONE AND
20 POINTS MORE THAN SPORTS DRINKS.
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FORMULATED TO TASTE GREAT
SCIENCE THAT TASTES
GOOD
Most high-sodium hydration products taste like salty medicine. At the levels required for effective rehydration, making something people actually want to drink is a real formulation challenge.
DripDrop solved it.
While working in underserved communities, Dr. Eduardo Dolhun saw children refuse ORS because of the taste—and understood that a product nobody would drink couldn't save anyone.
So he built a formula that does both: meets the clinical standard for rapid rehydration and tastes great so people will actually reach for it.
The result is a formula built for fast absorption that's delicious enough to drink every day.
ADDRESSING SKEPTICISM
COMMON QUESTIONS, DIRECT ANSWERS
We believe the science speaks for itself. Here are the honest answers to the questions consumers ask most.
Isn't DripDrop just an expensive electrolyte drink?
DripDrop is formulated to Oral Rehydration Therapy standards, developed to treat clinical dehydration. Most consumer sports drinks fail at least one of the three principles of fast hydration: they don't hit the optimal sodium concentration, their sugar-to-sodium ratio undermines the co-transport mechanism, or their osmolarity is too high. DripDrop is built to satisfy all three simultaneously. You can verify our formula against WHO ORS guidelines yourself.
Why does DripDrop have so much more sodium than Gatorade?
Because Principle #1 requires it. The co-transport mechanism needs sodium in the 490–815mg per 16 oz range to operate efficiently. Gatorade delivers only ~213mg per 16 oz — less than half the bottom of the clinical range. In our 2020 peer-reviewed clinical study, DripDrop's sodium concentration produced significantly greater fluid retention over 5 hours than a sports drink with roughly half the sodium.
LMNT also has high sodium—how is DripDrop different?
LMNT satisfies part of Principle #1 — high sodium, depending on the dilution ratio — but fails Principle #2 entirely. Its formula contains no co-transport partner whatsoever: no glucose, no amino acids. Without a co-transport partner to activate the intestinal transporter, sodium absorption relies on passive diffusion rather than active co-transport. DripDrop pairs its sodium with either glucose (SGLT1) or glycine (sodium-amino acid co-transport) to actively pull water across the intestinal wall quickly. High sodium is necessary — but Principle #2 is what converts it into rapid rehydration.
How does Zero Sugar Plus actually absorb without glucose?
Zero Sugar Plus replaces glucose with glycine — an amino acid — to activate a sodium-amino acid co-transport pathway that satisfies Principle #2 without any sugar. This system operates on the same fundamental principle as SGLT1: sodium drives the co-substrate activates, water follows osmotically. Glycine was validated in WHO expanded ORS research as a glucose-independent absorption pathway. Many competitive zero sugar products simply remove glucose without a co-transport mechanism — failing Principle #2 entirely.
How does DripDrop compare to Pedialyte?
Pedialyte does fulfill some ORS guidelines, but powder packs deliver only 490mg of sodium per packet — at the very bottom of the WHO ORS optimal range (Principle #1) — compared to DripDrop's 660mg. DripDrop also adds magnesium and zinc (both absent in Pedialyte), has a peer-reviewed clinical study on its specific formula, and offers Zero Sugar Plus with a validated sodium-amino acid co-transport mechanism using glycine — something Pedialyte's zero-sugar version does not provide.
Has DripDrop's formula actually been tested?
Yes — by two independent peer-reviewed studies. Fan et al. (2020) directly compared DripDrop ORS against a sports drink and water in a randomised crossover trial — DripDrop produced 34 percentage points more fluid retention than water and ~20% more than the sports drink. Sollanek et al. (2019) independently measured DripDrop powder's osmolarity and confirmed WHO compliance. No competitor on this page has both of these.
SCIENTIFIC REFERENCES
PEER-REVIEWED SOURCES
DRIPDROP CLINICAL STUDIES
[1] Fan, P.W., Burns, S.F., & Lee, J.K.W. (2020). Efficacy of ingesting an oral rehydration solution after exercise on fluid balance and endurance performance. Nutrients, 12(12), 3826. doi:10.3390/nu12123826 — DripDrop ORS at 216 mOsm/L; 30% fluid retention vs. −4% water and 10% sports drink.
[2] Sollanek, K.J., Kenefick, R.W., & Cheuvront, S.N. (2019). Osmolarity of commercially available oral rehydration solutions: impact of brand, storage time, and temperature. Nutrients, 11(7), 1485. doi:10.3390/nu11071485 — Independent lab confirms DripDrop powder is WHO-compliant (200–260 mOsm/L); Gatorade measured at ~334 mOsm/L.
ORS HISTORY & WHO STANDARDS
[3] WHO/UNICEF. (2006). Oral Rehydration Salts: Production of the New ORS. who.int — Establishes reduced-osmolarity ORS at 245 mOsm/L and validates amino acid co-substrates in expanded ORS formulations.
[4] Nalin, D.R. & Cash, R.A. (1968). Oral maintenance therapy for cholera in adults. Lancet, 2, 370–373. PubMed
[5] Pierce, N.F. et al. (1969). Oral replacement of water and electrolytes in cholera. Indian Journal of Medical Research, 57, 848–855. PubMed
[6] Hirschhorn, N. (1980). The treatment of acute diarrhea in children: a historical and physiological perspective. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 33(3), 637–663. doi:10.1093/ajcn/33.3.637
[7] WHO/UNICEF. (2004). Clinical Management of Acute Diarrhoea: Joint Statement. who.int
SODIUM CO-TRANSPORT MECHANISM (SGLT1)
[8] Schedl, H.P. & Clifton, J.A. (1963). Solute and water absorption by the human small intestine. Nature , 199, 1264–1267. doi:10.1038/1991264a0
[9] Wright, E.M. & Turk, E. (2004). The sodium/glucose cotransport family SLC5. Pflügers Archiv , 447, 510–518. doi:10.1007/s00424-003-1063-6
[10] Farthing, M.J.G. (1994). Oral rehydration therapy. Pharmacology & Therapeutics , 64(3), 477–492. doi:10.1016/0163-7258(94)90010-8
GLYCINE & SODIUM-AMINO ACID CO-TRANSPORT (SAAT1)
[11] Hellier, M.D., Thirumalai, C., & Holdsworth, C.D. (1973). The effect of amino acids and dipeptides on sodium and water absorption in man. Gut, 14(1), 41–45. PMC full text—Foundational sodium-amino acid co-transport paper; glycine and sodium absorption at ~1:1 molar ratio.
[12] Nalin, D.R. et al. (1970). Effect of glycine and glucose on sodium and water absorption in patients with cholera. Gut, 11(9), 768–772. doi:10.1136/gut.11.9.768
[13] Broer, S. (2008). Amino acid transport across mammalian intestinal and renal epithelia. Physiological Reviews, 88(1), 249–286. doi:10.1152/physrev.00018.2006
[14] Jonker, J.W. et al. (2024). Iterative assessment of a sports rehydration beverage containing a novel amino acid formula on water uptake kinetics. European Journal of Nutrition. doi:10.1007/s00394-024-03325-x — 2024 study: amino acid beverage produced greater water delivery vs. carbohydrate-electrolyte sports drink.
SODIUM, FLUID RETENTION & POST-EXERCISE REHYDRATION
[15] Shirreffs, S.M. et al. (1996). Post-exercise rehydration in man: effects of volume consumed and drink sodium content. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 28(10), 1260–1271. PubMed
[16] Shirreffs, S.M. & Maughan, R.J. (1998). Volume repletion after exercise-induced volume depletion in humans. American Journal of Physiology — Renal Physiology, 274, F868– F875. doi:10.1152/ajprenal.1998.274.5.F868
[17] Maughan, R. & Leiper, J. (1995). Sodium intake and post-exercise rehydration in man. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 71, 311–319. doi:10.1007/BF00240410
[18] Merson, S.J., Maughan, R.J., & Shirreffs, S.M. (2008). Rehydration with drinks differing in sodium concentration. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 103, 585–594. doi:10.1007/s00421-008-0748-4
OSMOLARITY & HYPOTONIC ORS
[19] Maughan, R.J. et al. (2016). A randomized trial to assess the potential of different beverages to affect hydration status. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 103, 717–723. doi:10.3945/ajcn.115.114769