Gatorade sports drinks are an electrolyte-replacement beverage. Most Gatorade beverages contains a mixture of water, sugar, flavoring and minerals, including sodium and potassium. Gatorade has advantages for endurance athletics. The water, sugar and electrolytes can help replenish what a person loses through sweat and breathing. People drinking these beverages casually, however, may not fully benefit from these ingredients and could consume excess calories, leading to weight gain.
Water
Gatorade contains primarily water. On average, your body loses up to 8 cups of water daily through perspiration, urination and respiration. You lose more water in hot or humid weather, or when you are engaged in strenuous activity. The water in Gatorade does replenish lost fluid; however, you pay for it at the register or vending machine, and it often comes with extra calories that you may not need.
Sugar
The sugar in Gatorade can be beneficial for aerobic exercise but may lead to excess calorie intake for non-exercisers. Athletes engaged in vigorous physical activity for more than 60 minutes need to replenish not only water but sugar, too. If you are exercising for a shorter period, water is probably all your body needs. The most popular Gatorade sports drink contains 50 calories per 8-oz. serving, including 13 g sugar. Gatorade is sold in bottles of varying sizes. The popular 32-oz. bottle contains four 8-oz. servings, amounting to 200 calories and 56 g sugar. This is close to the same amount of sugar as in a 20-oz. bottle of Coca-Cola, which contains 65 g sugar.
Electrolytes
Electrolytes are helpful for athletic performance, but not because they give you energy. In fact, electrolytes are critical to keeping your nervous and cardiac systems healthy. Like water, you lose electrolytes through perspiration, urination and respiration. Gatorade provides sodium and potassium compounds in minute quantities; each 8-oz. serving of Gatorade contains 110 mg sodium and 30 mg potassium. You need to replenish these electrolytes if you are exercising for more than 60 minutes at a moderate to high intensity.
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