Sports drinks are often touted for being the optimal source of fluids to rehydrate. Nearly every sports drink on the market boasts about electrolyte content and special formulations to help replace lost fluids during vigorous physical activity. Many athletes are under the impression these drinks are better for them (and tastier) than plain water.
Contrary to popular believe, sports drinks are no better at re-hydrating the body than water.
Excessive sugar
Sports drinks do provide a quick source of sugar and carbohydrates, however, many sports drinks are packed full of sugar which can lead to the well-known “sugar high” followed by a “crash.” This sudden sugar spike might help provide energy, however, this sugar spike will lead to a crash that could drastically affect an athlete’s performance, causing him or her to slow down, weaken or fatigue.
Bad for weight loss
For athletes who are aiming to lose weight and burn fat, sports drinks are a bad idea. A typical sports drink contains 80 calories per serving. This may not seem like a lot, but the typical sports drink bottle contains two or more servings, which can add up to several hundred calories per bottle. To burn the amount of calories in one serving of a sports drink, an athlete would need to run nearly an entire mile just to burn the calories from the sports drink.
Even sports drinks that are low-calorie can have a negative impact on an athlete’s health. Reduced calorie sports drinks often contain artificial sweeteners, such as aspartame, which are linked with brain tumors, weight gain and water retention.
Bad for teeth
Its no wonder that sports drinks are bad for teeth due to the excessive amounts of sugar in them. Sipping on or introducing any type of food or drink into the mouth starts the digestive process. Sipping a sports drinking over an extended period of time, even just an hour, can be enough to start, restart and continually restart the digestive process. This can be very damaging to the teeth, as the digestive enzymes, coupled with the excessive sugar, can rot the teeth.
Excessive sodium
Sports drinks often contain sodium. It isn’t a surprise that sports drinks contain sodium, especially considering that electrolytes are salt solutions, but excessive sodium intake can lead to water retention and electrolyte imbalances. Electrolyte imbalances can lead to a plethora of health problems, including water retention, dehydration, neurological problems and impaired athletic performance.
*Samantha Van Vleet is a biological sciences major and former high school athlete. She now cheers on her teenage siblings in their own athletic endeavors.