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Sports drinks are beverages which are designed to help athletes to rehydrate, as well as restore electrolytes, carbohydrates, and other nutrients, which can be depleted after training or competition. Nowadays, sports drinks are gaining in popularity among people as they give an increase to the stamina level. Sports drinks are recommended on the basis of number of factors like type of sport the person is engaged in, its intensity and duration, athlete’s nutritional status and many more. By electrolyte replacement, these beverages promote proper rehydration, which is important in delaying the onset of fatigue during exercise.

Presently, many electrolyte sports drinks are available in the market. Amongst all the marketing and publicity, it can become perplexing to know which sports drinks are the best and what you should be searching for when selecting the right sports drink, and when and why you should employ one. Athletes and non-athletes both type of individuals have the same basic nutrient requirements. For adequate calorie and energy replenishment, they require minerals, vitamins and over 40 other nutrients. The only difference for sports and exercise nutrition is in the quantities and the timing of the nutrient and food intake for balanced eating.

Why use sports drinks?

Sports drinks help in rapid replacement of fluid and electrolytes that lost during sports, exercise training or hard physical labor. Also, they help with muscle recovery and soreness, preventing dehydration, and supplying stamina and raised endurance during strenuous exercise. After ingestion during exercise, these sports drink provides a source of carbohydrate fuel to supplement the body’s limited stores and also water and electrolytes to replace losses that incurred through sweating.

Types of sports drinks:

Sports drinks are mainly of three types:

• Isotonic sports drinks: They contain similar concentrations of salt and sugar as in the human body.
• Hypertonic sports drinks: They contain a higher concentration of salt and sugar than the human body.
• Hypotonic sports drinks: They contain a lower concentration of salt and sugar than the human body.

Among all sport drink most sports drinks are fairly isotonic, having 4 to 5 heaped teaspoons of sugar per five ounce (13 and 19 grams per 250ml) serving. They never have a pH similarity with carbonated soft drinks.

Sports drinks nutrition:

Mostly, sports drinks are water, essential for any active individual whether a competitive athlete or fitness hobbyist. However, the additional ingredients (typically sodium, potassium and sugar, and, in so-called recovery drinks, protein) requirement in the drinks, varies depending on how hot the weather is outside and how long and how intense a workout is.

Typically, sports drinks supply about 15 to 18 grams of sugar in every 8-ounce serving. However, for the average workout, people who are eating three square meals a day don’t require extra calories those provided by carbs. Sodium and potassium minerals help to keep a body hydrated however during a moderate workout, most people don’t become depleted either of mineral.

Most people who work out for fitness (as opposed to professional competition) lose 500 to 1,000 mgs of sodium per hour. For example, a32-ounce bottle of Gatorade G2 supplies 440 milligrams of sodium. Generally, sports drinks which are specifically marketed for recovery (such as Gatorade’s G3) contain protein additionally to carbohydrates and electrolytes. After a workout, a combination of protein and carbs is a key for rebuilding muscle. Sometimes, sports drinks also contain an overlooked ingredient, flavoring. Several studies have suggested that children who play sports don’t be inclined to drink as much water as their bodies require unless that water is flavored.

During playing of sports, sweating occurs which tends to cause loss of fluids and electrolytes (minerals such as chloride, calcium, phosphate, magnesium, sodium and potassium), resulting in dehydration of body. Dehydration can also cause circulatory collapse and heat stroke if not treated. At this time, sports drinks benefits can be very well understood. Loss of fluid in the body can cause impaired performance and declined capacity for performing muscular work. Definitely, these sports drinks help to improve the performance level of an athlete by acting as energy booster.

Functions of electrolytes in the body:

For the functioning of many vital processes in the body, magnesium, calcium, potassium, sodium, chloride and phosphate are the important electrolytes. They regulate the fluid balance between body compartments and also help to maintain an acid-alkaline balance necessary for normal cellular activities, and bring electrical currents which make easy the control of hormone and neurotransmitter secretion required for nerve and muscle function. Also, they are necessary as cofactors for enzymes which manipulate a number of functions in the body including digestion.

Magnesium is an important mineral required for oxygen delivery to working muscles during training. Exercise is related with increased magnesium excretion from the body through sweating and magnesium depletion may decrease physical performance and reduce exercise capacity. For correct functioning of nervous and muscle tissue and the flow of fluid in and out of cells, sodium and potassium are important electrolytes. Calcium plays an important role in blood clotting, neurotransmitter release, maintenance of muscle tone and excitability of nervous and muscle tissue along with contributing to hardness of bones and teeth.

Facts about sport drink:

Sports drinks are very different products rather than imagination of many people. Sports drinks can offer endless energy during exercise, sports, or just a typical day, many of these sports drinks are simply a blend of simple carbohydrate in the form of glucose, and complex carbohydrate in the form of maltodextrin. This resulted in an increased sugar level into bloodstream. And to respond to this, body is enforced to generate insulin and raise the acidity of blood pH levels. The excess of glucose is stored in fat cells, and the spike in blood sugar and insulin inhibit the discharge of fats. Simply, sports drinks decrease weight loss.

Most sports drinks contain artificial sweeteners such as aspartame and acesulfame K, and they have been associated with nausea, migraines, muscle weakness, fatigue, memory loss, and more. Also, acesulfame K has been shown to stimulate insulin response and thus decreasing the blood sugar level. So, don’t reach for high street sports drinks when you require an energy boost as they are more harmful than beneficial.

As an alternative:

To satiate thirst before, during and after a workout, drinking water is one of the best ways. It is recommended by experts to drink an additional two to three cups of water within two hours of finishing your workout. Then, you should keep drinking water regularly; as though you don’t feel thirsty it’s still quite probable to be dehydrated. Nowadays, natural sports drinks are also available in market that supports the body through physical activity and supply more energy.

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