Skratch Labs: The Ethos

Allen Lim founded Skratch Labs with the goal of providing athletes with training food and drinks made from “scratch,” rather than from processed components. Many of Lim’s products focus on hydrating their clients. There is even a “hydration”– dedicated tab on the website specifically devoted to these items. We couldn’t help but notice significant overlap with many of our hydrating IV infusions, which also provide a natural source of crucial vitamins and hydration to athletes and other dehydrated individuals alike. In particular, their Oral Rehydration Salts (ORS) formula used to treat the most serious cases of dehydration shares many commonalities with our IV treatments.

Dehydration as a Global Problem

Although the athletic industry might be their primary target market, humanitarian considerations drove the creation of Skratch Labs’ “Rescue Hydration Mix”. On their site, Skratch Labs frames dehydration as a global problem. Their blog on the matter cites the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF reports that implicate dehydration due to diarrheal diseases as the second leading cause of death in children under five years of age. To combat this, the WHO has provided international guidelines to create “Oral Rehydration Salts” (or ORS).

Oral Rehydration Salts: Unpacked

ORS are powdered mixes containing relatively high amount of sodium and a little bit of sugar to optimize the replacement of water and electrolytes while improving the transport of water and vitamins across the gut and back into the body. Designed to optimize the body’s absorption of both water and nutrients, this mixture replenishes and rehydrates those experiencing the most severe forms of dehydration. Skratch Labs has created their own proprietary ORS formula, one containing only the essential components of Sodium, Potassium, Glucose, and Zinc.Those familiar with our treatments should notice striking ingredient overlap here: nutrients (zinc, potassium, etc.) infused in a saline solution to optimize absorption and hydration on the cellular level.

The IV Advantage

Nothing against Skratch Labs (it’s clear they do great work), but our delivery method is probably a little more effective. While taking these products orally will help, nothing is more efficient than an IV directly to the bloodstream. In bypassing the digestive tract, the nutrient absorption rate jumps to nearly 100%, as opposed to 70% with comparable oral products. Granted, we have yet to give back to the international community in the meaningful way that Skratch Labs’ Rescue Hydration Mix does. Nonetheless, their leadership on the matter is most admirable and we hope to follow in their footsteps when we have the capacity to do so.