Difference Between Sports Drink and Energy Drink
Many people think sports drink and energy drink are the same things but they are made for totally different consumers.
Most of the time we end up buying energy and sports drinks. We usually buy these products without knowing the difference between energy and sports drink. Many a times energy drinks are bought to have instead of a soft drink or to quench thirst but in reality that is not the purpose of energy drink. All you are doing is taking in lot of calories without making any effort to burn them. Energy drinks are mental stimulants; basically they are soft drinks which have caffeine, taurine and glucuronolactone with more calories than the normal soft drinks. Since the time new energy drinks have been introduced with alcohol content in them, there have been valid concerns about the consumption by the masses. The ingredients of energy drink usually include herbs like ginkgo and ginseng, amino acids including taurine and vitamins. It also has plant based stimulants like guarana but a major ingredient is caffeine. There are certain side effects that have been observed like difficulty in sleeping, indigestion, anxiety and palpitation. Furthermore it has been seen that excess intake of these drinks coupled with no exercise leads to obesity, since there is a considerable amount of sugar content in the drink.
Sports drinks are manufactured keeping in mind people who are more physically active or are athletes. These drinks don’t have stimulant effect but some of them might contain caffeine. Usually these sports drinks are rich in carbohydrates and are designed to take before or after an exercise regime. These sports drinks are usually safe and have been made after extensive scientific and nutritional research. The higher the levels of carbohydrates in the drink the slower will be the rate at which the stomach will be empty. Electrolytes in a drink will reduce the urine output and would encourage fluid retention and prevent dehydration. There are three different types of sports drink content that are available in the market. One is Isotonic which replaces fluids quickly which are lost due to sweating and gives a boost of carbohydrates. This is used by most of the athletics especially the middle and long distance runners or team sports. The Second type is Hypotonic is for athletics who need fluids without the boost of carbohydrates like jockeys and gymnasts. The third type is the Hypertonic which are taken during exercise to meet the energy requirements.
It is important to note that mixing sports and energy drink with alcohol is becoming a thrilling practice with the youngsters who should not try this at any cost since energy drink is a stimulant and alcohol is a depressant. The effect of contrasting the two can be harsh for the body. These days’ energy drinks are used by people who are leading a very busy and hectic life. It is important to know what is healthy for our body and what the body truly needs. There are healthy drinks available in the market like Purple and Monavie which are a better choice than energy or sports drink.
