Sports Drinks and Energy Drinks: One of these things is not like the other.
Welcome to Volume 2, September 2024 edition of the CCFP Newsletter!
As we navigate through the challenges of modern healthcare, staying informed about everyday health choices is crucial. This issue begins with an insightful article by Dr. Colin Alert titled "Sports Drinks and Energy Drinks: One of These Things is Not Like the Other." Dr. Alert explores the differences between these popular beverages, focusing on their intended uses, benefits, and potential risks. While sports drinks can be beneficial for hydration during physical activity, energy drinks, with their high caffeine content, pose potential health hazards, especially if consumed inappropriately. His article serves as a timely reminder to patients and healthcare providers alike to make informed decisions, particularly in the context of our ongoing battle with chronic diseases.
In addition, we will feature upcoming conferences and events hosted by the Association of General Practitioners of Jamaica, providing opportunities for continuing medical education and professional development.
We hope this edition serves as a valuable resource for you and your practice!
Family Physician.
Work. Play. Drink and keep cool and well hydrated.
Faced with the challenge of sweltering heat and the need to keep cool and well hydrated our supermarket shelves and our gas station carousels offer a variety of fluids to the consumer. While bottled water, coconut water and sports drinks are appropriate options to ‘beat the heat’, energy drinks can cause short term health problems, some severe, and the sugar sweetened beverages (soft drinks), in excess, are linked to the chronic diseases.
Sports drinks are water-based flavored beverages specifically made to be superior to plain water in terms of how fast they can be absorbed into the body. They are designed to be consumed before or during any form of strenuous physical activity that lasts more than 15-30 minutes, to prevent dehydration. They consist of water with small amounts of electrolytes such as sodium, calcium, potassium, magnesium, and others, and will generally have small quantities of added sugars. They are designed to be used by athletes and other people who are losing water and electrolytes during heavy exercise and sweating. They can also be used after the strenuous activity, to replace some of the water and electrolytes lost through heavy sweating, but this is not their optimal use.
Energy drinks, on the other hand, may also contain some water, electrolytes and added sugars, but their main purpose is to serve as a stimulant, something that raises the level of normal metabolic activity in the body. The most common stimulant ingredient is caffeine, but other stimulants in energy drinks include guarana, taurine and l-carnitine. They increase short term alertness (good thing that!), energy and attention. They are not designed for, and should not be used to replace electrolytes and fluids lost during exercise. They may or may not be carbonated and may also contain sugar, other sweeteners, or herbal extracts, among numerous other possible ingredients. Energy drinks may be particularly dangerous when mixed with alcohol.
Drinking a lot of energy drinks can be dangerous because of excessive caffeine or other stimulant consumption. A large amount of caffeine can cause rapid heartbeat. People can become jittery and anxious. They may have trouble sleeping, which paradoxically causes more fatigue and less energy over time. Those who consume energy drinks thinking that they replenish electrolytes and fluids may become dehydrated, especially as caffeine is a diuretic that promotes urination.
Large amount of caffeine consumption can lead to caffeine intoxication. This is uncommon but can be dangerous, even life-threatening, especially when the heart rhythm is disrupted. Individuals could suffer cardiac arrest as well as other severe symptoms such as brain swelling and kidney failure.
More than 400 milligrams of caffeine daily is considered excessive for most adults, this is the equivalent amount of four or five cups of coffee. Someone drinking 400 milligrams of caffeine is unlikely to have the severe effects of caffeine intoxication, but they could certainly experience jitteriness and sleep disruption. Some energy drinks can contain as much as 300 milligrams of caffeine in each bottle or can.
Children and adolescents should not consume energy drinks at all. Drinks that contain caffeine and added sugar should not be consumed; as such beverages can increase the risk of anxiety, hyperactivity and even excessive weight gain, heart disease and liver disease. Parents should be really careful to look at the label of each drink that their kids are drinking. Some drinks are packaged to look similar but actually contain very different amounts of ingredients.
There may be some adults who use energy drinks as a performance enhancer in competitive formal sport. This may run afoul of anti-doping regulations, as stimulants are not allowed in competitive sport. They should not use energy drinks for this purpose. Energy drinks may offer a quick energy boost, but they have potential risks and are not a good long-term solution.
Other
people who should be cautious about energy drinks include those with chronic
heart problems or high blood pressure since caffeine and other stimulants in
the energy drinks could increase heart rate and blood pressure. Caffeine can
also interfere with certain medications, including some anti-depressants,
seizure medications and diabetes medications. People who have underlying
medical conditions and who are on prescription medications should check with
their family physicians about energy drink use.
If you are
suffering from ongoing exhaustion, it’s important to make sure there aren’t
underlying medical issues, such as anemia, hypothyroidism or sleep apnea. Take
a look at your sleep schedule and see if changing some sleep habits could
help. A change to your diet may also give you more energy, as could adding physical
activity to your regular schedule. And be sure to keep well-hydrated; something
simple like drinking plenty of fluids throughout the day could help you more
than an energy drink, and without the risk that comes from consuming excessive
amounts of stimulants. This is especially true in these very hot days that we
are currently experiencing.
Please feel free to visit our websites to receive frequent updates from the college.
Regional Website - Caribbean College of Family Physicians
Association of General Practitioners of Jamaica
Please remember to support the college's webinars, the next webinar will be on September 26, 2024. Registration is now open. Please register here:
REGISTRATION: Nutrition Webinar: Theme: “Managing Obesity in Primary Health-Care
PAY BY VISA DEBIT OR CREDIT CARD
BANK TRANSFER BANK/BRANCH: NCB MANOR PARK/CONSTANT SPRING FINANCIAL CENTRE ACCOUNT NAME: CARIBBEAN COLLEGE OF FAMILY PHYSICIANS ACCOUNT NUMBER: 331001678 ACCOUNT TYPE: J$ BUSINESS CHEQUING/CURRENT ACCOUNT
Confirmation of payment to be emailed to CCFP Secretary
The Association of General Practitioners of Jamaica, in collaboration with Ryvis Pharma, invites you to join a free CME Webinar on October 17, 2024.
To register, please visit: CME Webinar Registration.
Attendance is free, and participants will receive complimentary CME certificates. This event offers 2 hours of CME credit. Don't miss this opportunity for professional development!
Please see flyer below with additional details of the upcoming event.
Warm regards,
Professor Marvin Reid
President, Caribbean College of Family Physicians
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