Is That Beverage a Health Drink
Or Something Bad for You?

Health Drink or Hurt Your Health Drink? I probably shouldn’t be, but I’m always taken aback when I hear an intelligent person talk about needing a beverage like Gatorade. We’ve been terribly indoctrinated by the food manufacturers to think this bottled substance or one like it is somehow necessary when we engage in physical activity.

Of course it’s important to replenish the water you’ve lost during exercise, but unless you are working out very hard for hours you don’t need more than fresh water.

We always see ads for these health drinks prominently displayed at sporting events. One would think that if an athlete is drinking them, they must be good, right? At the risk of sounding cynical, I wonder how much the food manufacturers pay the sports teams to display their products.

Margo Wootan, director of nutrition policy at the Center for Science in the Public Interest says, “For years we’ve been programmed to believe that sports drinks are healthy and you need to replenish those electrolytes after you go out and walk the dog…. They don’t want any official sanctioning of the idea that sports drinks are associated with obesity.”

According to Mary Story, professor of nutrition at the University of Minnesota’s School of Public Health, “Most kids you see carrying around sports drinks are not athletes. When you look at the ingredients, it’s water, high-fructose corn syrup and salt. The question is, who is really benefitting? Is it the kids or the companies that make [the drinks]?”

Here are some of the common drinks and their ingredients. They also contain additional sodium and potassium.

The Dangers of High-Fructose Corn Syrup

Do you think that because the government allows a substance to be put into food products that it’s safe? Do you believe they are looking out for your health? I hope not, because this is just another dangerous substance in food and eating it is contributing to our nation’s obesity and poor health.

Briefly, here are some of the risks associated with high-fructose corn syrup:

• It’s been implicated in elevated blood cholesterol and the formation of blood clots.
• HFCS inhibits white blood cell action, thus compromising the body’s immune system.
• It may contribute to complications of diabetes more than glucose.
• It causes a significant increase in the concentration of uric acid. An increase in uric acid can be an indication of heart disease, according to Nancy Appleton, PhD, clinical nutritionist, in Lick the Sugar Habit.
• Women on oral contraceptives may experience elevated insulin levels.
• HFCS contributes to mineral losses, especially iron, magnesium, calcium and zinc.
• It may alter intracellular metabolism, facilitating accelerated aging.
• Fructose turns to fat more than any other sugar. Maybe this is one reason Americans are getting fatter and fatter.
• Fructose inhibits copper metabolism which can lead to bone fragility, anemia, connective tissue defects, heart arrythmias, high cholesterol, heart attacks, and out-of-control blood sugar levels.

A Good-For-Your-Health Drink

• 1 tablespoon honey
• 2 tablespoons hot water to dissolve honey
• pinch of salt
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 8 ounces cool water

Mix this together for a thirst-quenching lemonade.

Do yourself and your family a big favor and stay away from popular sugar-laden and chemical-laden drinks of all kinds.

Return to Healthy Foods from this Health Drink information page.