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Marla Deen

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Sneaky Sugar

May 1, 2012 by Marla-Deen Brooks Leave a Comment

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Recently, one of my son’s spent some time volunteering at a carnival.  While I watched him with all the kids working with younger kids and having a great time, I noticed a table set up and lined with all sorts of drinks.  Hmmmm, I thought.  This looks interesting.  I strolled over to the table sponsored by Strong4Life and was thrilled (and a little horrified) with their presentation.  
Let me back up to a few of the arguments I have been having with my boys.  I have been really on my soapbox about a growing habit they seemed to be forming of reaching for a sports drink every day “just because it’s there”.  They would choose a sports drink without having broken a sweat!  I mean, getting out of the car, carrying a bookbag all the way to door after a long and challenging day of school just doesn’t seem to warrant a sports drink!  Even on lots of their practice days they aren’t sweating profusely enough to loose enough electrolytes and glycogen to actually need to replenish it with a sugar loaded sports drink.  So, now you get the drift of my most recent “health challenge” in my home.  So, imagine my interest and inner “I told you so!” when I saw a table set out specifically showing the amount of sugar in one of the popular sports drinks . . .and from the shape of the bottle in the photo you can use your imagination to determine which it is.
Strong4Kids is an organization sponsored by Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta with a mission to make kids better today and healthier tomorrow.  Their main objective is to tackle childhood obesity which is becoming a crisis.
During this event they had banners, games, hula hoop contests and all sorts of fun “moving” activities for the kids.  They had flyers available with their mission and tips for adults to help get our children more active and make healthier choices.
They could see what they were drinking, which is often where a lot of empty and sneaky calories are consumed.

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So, you can see from the photographs that the red sports drink has 9 tsp of sugar.  Who knew?  The green bottle of what looks like a Sprite has 16 tsp. ( Keep in mind that 5 grams of sugar equals 1 tsp.  So, when reading labels for sugar content it is mostly listed in grams but you can picture the tsp  in these cups.)  An apple juice bottle has 14 tsp.  There is also a couple of juice boxes with cups of jelly beans in front to show that drinking the juice box is the same as eating the jelly beans.  Also, just above you can see that drinking that cola would be the same as eating ALL of the cookies in the jar.  Yikes!!  I think we all know that these choices are loaded with sugar, but to see it set out visually really brings it home.  I thought it was a great demonstration not only for the kids, but for the adults alike.
I could go on for days about the dangers of eating and drinking too much sugar and you can google and read for yourself.  We are surrounded by it everywhere and we are seeing the negative effects daily.
Right now I am focusing just a little bit  more on the sports drinks as I think they have taken off and are definitely being abused. 

Here is a bit of history and some  of the NEGATIVES about drinking sports drinks:  
Since its creation in 1965 at the University of Florida, Gatorade has been used by athletes to quench their thirst and refuel their bodies. Through extensive research the Gatorade Sport Science Institute created and recreated a variety of sports drinks that helps athletes to maintain peak performance. Gatorade is now a popular beverage that is the official sports drink of many organizations, including the NBA, PGA and MLB. The popularity and positive effects of Gatorade does not mean that it’s all good when it comes to this iconic beverage. There are cons to the use of Gatorade.

Dental Decay

Gatorade and other sports drinks are highly acidic and as it passes over teeth it can cause decay of tooth enamel. This can eventually result in cavities. This process is exacerbated because most people consume Gatorade when they parched and have little natural saliva in their mouth, allowing the Gatorade to stick to the teeth.  YUCK!


 Weight Gain

Many people participate in athletic activities to lose weight. For those one weight loss diets, Gatorade is not a good choice, because the drink contains a relatively high number of calories. Gatorade is designed to replenish the fuel used by the body in the way of carbohydrate replacement, particularly glucose and fructose. So while people looking to lose weight are cutting carbohydrates and calories from their diet, Gatorade contains significant amounts sugars and calories.

Lack of Protein

Although research is split in this area, there is a strong case for the addition of protein to any sports drink. Gatorade competitors that include protein in their formulas will cite research, such as that published in the December, 2008 “Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition,” which shows improved recovery with the inclusion of protein in a sports drink. Protein is not a primary source of fuel for activity but it is responsible for the recovery of lean tissue. Muscle, ligaments and tendons need protein to rebuild after activity. This is particularly important for those involved in intense strength-training workouts.  I think this is for elite athletes or endurance athletes.

There is also research that shows that excessive use of these type of sports drinks reduced testosterone levels in males.  (Now, maybe that’s what I should be telling these boys.)

 Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/68746-cons-gatorade/#ixzz1tf2H09Y7

Did you notice the bottle of water on the far right?  Zero grams of sugar.  Of course!  The natural choice!  It replenishes everything you need regardless of how sweaty you get!

ALSO, GIVEAWAY WINNERS ARE . . . drumroll please. . . 
Mary Aden and Heather Jaeger.  Contact me please ladies so I can get your goodies to you!  Thanks for trying!

Have a great day!  Grab a water and get going!

Filed Under: General Post, Sports Drinks, Sugar

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