Sports drinks can help improve performance for athletes who participate in endurance sports lasting > 1 hour.  The primary functions of sports drinks are that they help to hydrate athletes, they provide carbohydrate energy and they replace electrolytes lost in sweat.   But with all of the beverages out there, how do you know which one to choose?  The following are some guidelines to help you pick a drink that will meet the demands of your sport:

• To replenish Carbohydrates without getting an upset stomach, look for sports drinks that are:
  • 6-8% carbohydrate (14-19 gm carbohydrate per 8 oz)
  • A blend of sucrose, glucose and Fructose
  • NOT carbonated
• Drinks that contain sodium and potassium help to replace electrolytes
• Choosing a cold beverage of your favorite flavor helps increase fluid consumption.  Beverages that contain sodium also promote greater fluid intakes.  All of which can help you to stay well hydrated.
• Examples of sports drinks that meet all of these guidelines are Gatorade, Powerade and Accelerade. 

So, now that you know how to choose the proper beverage, you might be wondering how much you should consume during exercise.  Endurance athletes should aim to get 30-60 grams of carbohydrate for each hour of exercise.  A 24oz sports drink that is 6-8% carbohydrate supplies 42-57 grams of carbohydrate.  Therefore, you would want to consume about 20-25 ounces of sports drinks per hour of exercise, and don’t dilute them because they are specifically formulated to meet the demands of sports.

For more information about fluid needs and athletes please see “Hydration for Athletes“.

When you walk through the grocery store, it is easy to see that cereal is one of the most popular breakfast choices.  After all, how many other foods take up an entire isle of the store?  Cereal can be a great choice because it is quick and easy, it tastes great and it can be very healthy.  However, not all cereals are created equal and many of them can leave you hungry mid-morning.  Choosing a high-fiber cereal can add some real lasting value and along with other health benefits.

So, how much fiber should you have in your cereal?  Any cereal with at least 3 grams of fiber per serving is a very good source of fiber.  The following are a few examples of high fiber cereals:

• Kellogg’s All-Bran
• Post Grape-Nuts
• Post 100% Bran
• Bran Buds
• Raisin Bran
• Fiber-One
• Corn Bran
• Bran Chex
• Kashi Cereals
• Organic Nutlettes Soy Cereal

If the above cereals aren’t sweet enough for your taste, try adding fresh, frozen or dried fruit to your cereal.  Another option would be to mix half of your favorite cereal with half of one of the high-fiber choices.  Always remember to add fiber gradually and as you increase fiber, increase the amount of water you drink as well. 

For more tips on how to choose a healthy cereal, see my previous post “Do You Want Some Cereal with that Sugar?”.

Food shopping can be so confusing, especially with all of the different health claims and information on product labels.  One question that people often ask is whether they should choose reduced-fat or regular products.  The answer to that question really depends on the product, and reading the food label can be the best way to make an informed decision.  The following are some things to look consider when choosing a product.

If they replace the fat with sugar, it is generally not a better choice.  A calorie is a calorie is a calorie.  It doesn’t matter if the calories come from sugar or fat; consuming more calories than you burn will lead to weight gain.  Sometimes, low-fat products can even be higher in calories than the regular version.  For example, a Fat-free fig cookie is 70 calories versus the regular product that is only 50 calories.  To see if they added extra sugar, look for words like sugar, corn syrup, rice syrup and high-fructose corn syrup on the ingredient label.      

When a product uses a lower-fat preparation method to create a reduced-fat version, it generally is a better option.  For example, when something is baked instead of fried, the manufactures are often not adding another ingredient.  This often leads to a product that is lower in fat and calories.

Another thing to take into consideration is the type of fat that is being reduced.  Saturated fats and Trans fats are unhealthy and can increase the risk of heart disease, so cutting down on these types of fat would be beneficial.  Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats are healthy fats, so reduced-fat versions of these products would not necessarily be better.  For example, peanut butter is made up of primarily healthy fats so the full-fat version would be best.  On the other hand, butter is a saturated fat, so a reduced-fat version would be better.

For more information about good fats vs. bad fats click here.