Tea, fruits for energy: Study

Sydney, Feb 10: Sports drinks may be the preferred beverage of many top sports stars, but they are not ideal for average people as they are just empty calories, nutrition experts warn.

According to a report in Herald Sun, though a study has found sales of the drinks soaring last year, nutritionists believe drinking water and eating fruit is more beneficial.


Australian Nutrition Foundation chair Professor Mark Wahlqvist said sports drinks were not as good as many believe. "They have a much narrower place in life than is generally thought. For most people, we need to do no more than have water from the tap."


Professor Wahlqvist said drinking water or tea and eating fruit was best for long-lasting energy. "For most of us, a combination of fluid from water and tea and intact fruit is preferred. Fruit is best intact because its physical structure allows it to be digested and absorbed slowly and you get a gradual release of glucose."

The flavoured sports drinks boast quick re-hydration, contain water, electrolytes and carbohydrates, while some also include vitamin B. Although used by many top international sports stars, including Australia’s cricketers, the sports drinks are under a cloud in the tennis arena.

Andre Agassi and Spanish star Albert Costa have said they are scared to consume the drinks since the Greg Rusedski drug-test drama.



Professor Wahlqvist said there was a case for the sports drinks to be used by athletes in extreme endurance sports, when electrolyte replacement was beneficial. Studies of cross-country skiers showed the drinks offered extra endurance.

Nutrition Australia sports dietitian Ingrid Phyland said the drinks definitely had a role for athletes when activity continued after an hour. "They have a purpose for what they were made for. But they were not good for people with low or medium activity levels".
Bureau Report