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Sports Drinks and Children

		

		By Joshua Hutchins, CSCS



On numerous occasions I have witnessed parent's refrigerators stocked with GatoradeTM and other sports drinks for their children to drink throughout the day. When a dialogue is started about the use of sports drinks, I usually get some form of this response; "I thought GatoradeTM was good for them?" This statement is only true in certain situations.



Sports drinks are designed to replenish your body of fluids, carbohydrates, and electrolytes that are lost during extended bouts of exercise. They do an excellent job of this and numerous studies have been conducted over the years to validate this fact. However, during sedentary daily activities, such as a school work or watching TV, the additional carbohydrates and electrolytes that sports drinks contain are not necessary. 



So even if sports drinks are unnecessary, what's the harm? The problem really lies in the carbohydrates which are in the form of simple sugar. For instance, the serving size that GatoradeTM lists on its bottles is 8 oz. Each serving contains 14 grams of sugar and 50 calories. Not too bad. But remember how many servings there are per bottle. The average bottle is 20 ounces. That equals 2.5 servings, 35 grams of sugar, and 125 calories. If your child is among the millions in the country that is battling adolescent obesity, this can be especially concerning.



Another concern that may go unnoticed by the average consumer is that most sports drinks are designed to actually make you thirstier and thus drink more of their beverage. GatoradeTM spells this out on their website; "...the electrolytes in GatoradeTM trigger activation of the body's thirst mechanism...". As evil as that sounds, it is actually done for a valid reason. Some athletes put themselves at risk of dehydration by not taking in enough liquid during exercise. For this reason, encouraging the body to take in more is a good thing. However, this same mechanism will be just as effective on a sedentary child encouraging them to take in yet even more unneeded calories.



In conclusion, don't think of sports drinks as "health food". They are high in sugar while vast majorities are void of any vitamins. By definition this makes them fall under the dreaded "empty calories" heading. For this reason, sports drinks should be consumed sparingly throughout the day unless being used for their intended purpose: rehydration of active individuals.




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* The preceding is the opinion of Joshua Hutchins and intended to be used as general information. Any questions specific to your child about this topic should be directed to his/her pediatrician. 


© 2005  by Joshua Hutchins and Core Results, Inc.


			
		

		

			
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