Why Is Water Better Than Sports Drinks

Gavin, Mary. "Sports and Energy Drinks: Should Your Child Drink Them?" KidsHealth - the Web's Most Visited Site about Children's Health. The Nemours Foundation, 1 Oct. 2014. Web. 1 July

Water has no added sugars and artificial sweeteners, caffeine, calories, and other additives which cause problems with the body. According to Elle Paula in Water Vs. Soda Pop, Soda does nothing for you body only negative things. Water is good because it is calorie free but also has many great benefits.

Sports Drinks Replace Water – So many people replace water with sports drinks during exercise. The truth is, most people who drink sports drinks would be much

6. PHIL LIPID and PROFESSOR TOSOL discuss the Great Dehydration. Explain what you think occurred during the Great Dehydration. Why are sports drinks recommended to prevent, or treat, dehydration?

All throughout an athletes life they are told to drink plenty of water, and replace their fluids. Athletes are told this enough to the point where it makes numbs them since they heard it so many times to the point where they forget the extreme importance of proper hydration, proper hydration. Proper hydration is not only key to optimum health, but also to great performance. Athletes are told to drink plenty of water, but do they really know why? It is this writer’s opinion that a greater understanding of proper hydration can lead to better health and performance for athletes and help spread awareness for dehydration and over hydration.

Gatorade has a big impact on sport culture in America. From fans, athletes, and sponsors this drinks has become the symbol of American sportsmanship. In the early era many players would drink Gatorade to refresh themselves before continuing to play. By the mid-1980’s Gatorade changed its position to shower coaches and players after victories. This drink would revolutionize the entire sport world. By the 21st Century teams across the world would use Gatorade to celebrate. In America many teams and players are sponsored by the Gatorade Company to use their product and name new flavors after themselves. By far Gatorade is the official sport drinks of many sports, such as football and soccer.

This study focuses on the effects of ingested caffeinated energy drink compared to placebo in three different sports, rugby, soccer, and volleyball. Each sport had a dissimilar number of participants, including male and female. The effects were analyzed under different circumstances in each sport performed. A few materials were used during the activities to monitor precisely the changes in all participants’ bodies. This study illustrates significant positive changes and improvement in all participants’ performances when they ingested a caffeinated energy drink.

Have you ever gotten a sports drink instead of a soda thinking you were choosing a healthier option? Well this might change your perspective. Powerade and Gatorade are just watered down soda; yes,  it gives you electrolytes which is what you lose when you sweat, but that does not mean it is good for you. There are many other healthier ways of getting electrolytes than by just drinking a sugar drink. In the Powerade article written by the company does not argue about how water is not helpful to athletes and does not have the opposing argument. Although the gatorade article written by David R. Lamb they make it more persuasive than informational.

I believe sport drinks are overhyped because it's no different than having a soda or juice because it's all extra calories.

Each sports drink contains 21 grams of sugar are contained in a 12 ounce bottle of Gatorade. With most bottles being 32 ounces, the consumer is actually ingesting 56 grams of sugar. Although this is not healthy, it is less grams of sugar than an average soda per ounce. “In fact, Berkeley researchers say the sugar in sports drinks may be contributing to the child obesity epidemic by increasing their caloric intake”. For consumers that are less active, the added sugar in their diet is not recommended. Weight gain from extra calories has also been found to be a problem for less active consumers. “For people who are not exercising for at least one hour, 5 days per week, water is the best bet for staying hydrated.” Experts suggest sports drink consumption should be monitored by children’s parents. The best source of hydration for children continues to be water (Schaefer). Unless a person is participating in vigorous exercise for a long period of time, water is the best option for

It is important for anyone doing physical activity to keep well hydrated, for performance to be at its best. Sports drinks are specially formulated to help people rehydrate during or after exercise. Drinks such as Gatorade and Powerade contain the main electrolytes and carbohydrates, which are used by the working muscles, to maintain optimal sports performance (Medindia.net, 2014). The acidity of sports drinks and the sugars, is raising health concerns, and creates unnecessary calories. (Nutritionwonderland.com, 2014) Sports drinks are proven to only be necessary when working intensely for over 90 minutes, so an athlete running a marathon may need a Powerade, but water is the best source of hydration for exercise of 90min or less.

Isotonic drinks contain the same concentration of glucose to water. They regularly contain sodium so that they are quicker to absorb into the bloodstream. They are useful in warmer weather conditions and they can be used before exercise.

The major reason anyone drinks fluid before, during and after physical activity is to replace the water that is lost through sweat. If the water isn't replaced dehydration will occur and performance will be hampered. The purpose of sports drinks is to help rehydrate your body quickly and help improve performance and productivity. This is accomplished through a well-balanced mix of water, sugar (carbohydrates) and salts (electrolytes), the major ingredients in most sports drinks. These ingredients, combined with a variety of fruit flavours, create pleasant tasting drinks that, according to the companies, are suppose to help your athletic performance. Results prove that commercial sport drinks generally accomplish what they set out to do.

Strengths: * Sports drinks one of the fastest growing categories of the beverage market. * Healthy and active lifestyle. * Higher levels of income and education. * Easy to carry to the gym and playing field/court. * Isn’t carbonated. * Easy to ingest and digest. * Excellent source of antioxidant vitamins and minerals.

Sports drinks are used to receive energy while doing an active, or athletic, event. There are three popular types of sports drinks: isotonic (average athlete), hypotonic (low-perspiration athletes; jockeys and gymnasts), and hypertonic (long distance runners that need the extra carbohydrates and electrolytes). Isotonic sports drinks quickly replace fluids lost by sweating and supply a boost of carbohydrates. Hypotonic sports drinks quickly replace fluid lost. Hypertonic sports drinks supplement daily carbohydrate