Think you are "doing your body good" by sucking down a sports drink after you workout?  Time to think again.  Most sports nutrition advocates recommend using sports drinks in order to maintain your body's electrolyte levels.  The electrolytes, which are mainly sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, and chloride are needed in your body for proper water balance, and to prevent muscle weakness and cramps when you push yourself to your limits.

Vigorous exercise, or exercise of long duration may deplete electrolyte levels in your body due to dehydration.  That's the whole idea of using a "sports drink" in the first place: to keep your body properly hydrated, and keep peak muscle performance.

So what is the problem with sports drinks?  If you take a look at the ingredients list —something I do all the time— you will notice an ingredient called "BVO."  On the labels of Gatorade, Powerade, and AMP Energy Drink it is listed as Brominated Vegetable Oil.  On other soft drink labels such as Mountain Dew, Orange Crush, Squirt, Sun Drop, and Orange or Pineapple Fanta, you might also see it listed as Brominated Soybean Oil or just BVO.  It is used as an emulsifier: like soap is to oils, so that the cloudy appearance of the drink looks uniform.

So why is it bad for you?  Have you ever heard of those kinds of oils that are supposed to be bad for you called "hydrogenated oils?"  How about "trans-fats," ever heard of those?  Trans fats and hydrogenated oils are just different descriptions of the same thing.  We have finally become familiar enough with nutrition to know these oils are not suitable for human consumption on a regular basis.  As a matter of fact, hydrogenated oils, as found in processed foods, margarine, and shortening, are dangerous for the health of your cardiovascular system.  People who consume margarine have twice the rate of heart disease than butter eaters—and you thought butter was bad! source: Nutrition Week 3/22/91 21:12

Hydrogenated Oil vs. BVO
BVO is also a processed oil, but instead of using hydrogen to destroy the oil (as in hydrogenated oils), bromine is used.  Bromine is an element much like chlorine, but bromine—in any form—has no use at all in your body.  It is toxic to your thyroid gland, and many other tissues in the human body, such as the breasts, ovaries, prostate, stomach, skin, and ultimately, even your brain.

Over the long term, ingestion of artificially brominated products can only be a detriment to your overall health.  Where else do we encounter bromine in our environment or food?  Bleached white flour (brominated flour), pesticides, fumigants, fire retardants, and certain chemical compounds used in conventional medicine.

What can you do?
Make your own sports drink!  Start with pure water, add some orange juice or lemon juice, add a pinch of unprocessed salt (not regular table salt), and a little honey.  Want a great tasting natural alternative to sports drinks?  Try some coconut water with just a little pinch of unprocessed salt!  It has all of the electrolytes, and the taste is—Wow!

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