[Ansteorra] Fw: [SCA-Chirurgeon] Rethinking the hydration paradigm

[Galen of Ockham, OP]

I'm glad to see some great discussion on this topic!
> Yet this discussion fails to take into account other factors such as excess simple sugars in the soft drinks.
The article was looking at only the hydration aspect. There are, of 
course, many other factors about nutrition that can be brought into the 
picture. They will tend to bite you later, whereas dehydration will get 
you quickly.
> It is often not considered a good idea to flood your body with sugar after strenuous exercise.  Rather, more complex starches like breads, pastas, and crackers are preferred.
Simple sugars are, from a sound nutrition standpoint, best to be avoided 
or minimized altogether. Carbohydrates are good to have in the first 30 
- 60 minutes following exercise to help replenish the glycogen stores in 
the muscles that have been depleted by exercise. Complex carbs are 
digested more slowly and give a slower rise in blood glucose levels, 
which also means your body doesn't respond by pumping out large amounts 
of insulin. Some complex carbs can still rapidly increase blood glucose 
levels. This tendency is reflected in a foods glycemic index.
>     In particular, soft drinks are high in fructose, which is rapidly digested, but not necessarily turned into glycogen to help replenish reserve energy stores.  It is more likely to be digested and converted to excess fat than anything else, and it still leaves the body with less than satisfactory reserves of energy.
Fructose can be an effective substrate for the formation of glycogen. A 
quick search turned up a study in Medical Science in Sports and Exercise 
from 2008 which measured muscle glycogen in humans after 4 hours of 
recovery with glucose or glucose+fructose. There was no difference in 
glycogen stores with either recovery solution (Wallis et al, Vol 40, #10 
pp 1789-94).

The elevated insulin levels drive the formation of fat, so high glycemic 
index diets tend to drive insulin up (and insulin resistance up), and 
lead to more fat deposition.
>   Plus, when the body DOES have excess glucose in the blood stream, it can choose to excrete the excess in urine, which does lead to increased water loss due to osmotic pressure in the kidneys.
This is true, but typically not seen in the non-diabetic.
>     Looking at only the caffeine in sodas in an overly simplistic
>   view of things.  Bottom line, it's usually wiser to drink water, replenish electrolytes, and ingest complex carbs FIRST, then look at your sodas.
>
I very much agree with this conclusion. However, people don't always do 
what's best for them.



-- 
Magister Galenus Ockhamnesis
Friar Galen of Ockham, OP
A Study in Natural Philosophy: http://medievalscience.org
Chirurgeon's Point: http://chirurgeon.org <http://chirurgeon.org/>