General

Drinking Fluids Before, During and After Sports Important For Children

Surprising, as it may seem, the most important part of an athlete's diet isn't what they eat, it is what and how much they drink. Drinking fluids before, during and after sports is especially important for pre-adolescent children because they have special fluid needs compared to adults, or even teenagers. Recent research, however, suggests that a "one-size-fits-all" prescriptive advice to drinking is outdated because sweat water losses are dynamic and and because the three main drivers of sweat water loss are highly variable in children.

SmartTeams™ Talks: Best Drink For Sports Hydration? Mostly Just A Matter of Taste

The consensus of experts is that any tasty drink works for sports hydration unless it is forbidden (e.g. energy drinks, coffee or tea), including room temperature or ice water, or sports drinks, says Dr. Jim MacDonald, a pediatric sports medicine physician at Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio.

SmartTeams Talk: Enacting Pro-Active Policies To Prevent Sudden Death in Youth Sports Is Challenging, Says UConn's Casa

The leading expert on sudden death of youth athletes argues that youth sports safety policies need to be developed and implemented by sports medicine professionals, not athletic administrators, and notes that the level of risk of catastrophic sports injury often depends on how a state athletic association responds to the death of athletes in their states.

NATA Revised Exertional Heat Illness Position Statement

NATA has released an executive summary of a new position statement on exertional heat illnesses revising its 2002 statement to reflect new research and expert consensus.

Banning Sale Of Single-Serve Water Bottles: Will Concord's Law Be Second Shot Heard Round The World?

Two nights ago, I played a small part in making history, and, hopefully, in starting a new revolution.

Concord, Massachusetts, the town where I have lived for the past twenty-five years and where the first shots of the Revolutionary War were fired in 1775, voted at our annual town meeting to approve Warrant Article 32 banning the sale, after January 1, 2013, of non-sparkling, unflavorMinuteman Statue Concord MAed water in single-serving (e.g. 34 ounces/1 liter or less) plastic bottles.  

That my home town of Concord, Massachusetts voted to ban the sale of single-serving plastic water bottles may not rival the original "shot heard ‘round the world" at the Old North Bridge on April 19, 1775, but it may have sounded a clarion call to environmental arms.

Ten Hydration Tips for Youth Athletes

A handy list of ten hydration tips for youth athletes from MomsTeam's Dr. Susan Yeargin.

Basic Hydration Tips for Youth Athletes with Cystic Fibrosis and Diabetes

While all children and adolescents have hydration needs - especially in hot and humid conditions - those with cystic fibrosis or diabetes need to pay extra care and attention to hydration.  Here are some hydration tips for parents of athletes with CF or diabetes.

Sports Drinks for Sports, Energy Drinks Never, Says Pediatrics Group

Sports drinks should be consumed by children and adolescents only when there is a need for fluid, carbohydrate and electrolyte replenishment during and after prolonged, vigorous sports participation, while the ingestion of energy drinks should avoided completely, recommends the American Academy of Pediatrics in a report published in the journal Pediatrics.

Performance Nutrition for Football: Replacing Electrolytes Prevents Muscle Cramps

The loss of electrolytes such as sodium and potassium through sweat can lead to muscle cramps, nausea, vomiting and even death.  Electrolytes are minerals (sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, and chloride) which send messages to nerves and muscles throughout the body,  and are involved with muscle contraction and relaxation during exercise, so that an imbalance can impact the actual contraction of the muscle itself.

Ask Dr. Lindsay: Frequently Asked Questions About Sports Drinks

Dr. Lindsay Baker, a senior scientist at the Gatorade Sports Science Institute, answers frequently asked questions about sports drinks and  why it is important for young athletes to stay hydrated and consume carbohydrates to perform at their best.
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