Young athletes are getting more and more competitive these days. We talked to the experts on what they need for peak performance and the dangerous trends that could set them back.
In a cramped office at the University of Washington, Sports Dietitian Emily Edison is showing us some of the best things to put into our bodies-especially when it comes to young athletes.
"We got some blueberries that very high in antioxidants and great carbohydrate source. If we get more antioxidants in the body we see less damage to the muscle and the system overall," she says.
"When we are talking about food for sport it's really important that we address that high carbohydrates are the number one thing for athletes.
But Edison says she has real concerns about some of the more "modern day" energy sources.
"A lot of these ingredients have not been tested on kids, they haven't been proven to be safe in kids."
Energy drinks, none of them, is regulated by the food and drug administration and most are loaded with stimulants. Edison says by the time teen athletes reach high school or college many have already built-up a high tolerance.
“If you get to the collegiate level and you're taking in that much caffeine you can test positive and NCAA does ban caffeine in higher levels,” she adds.
Other popular stimulants in energy drinks are gurana and ma huang--which is a form of ephedrine. More so: Edison says each body handles them differently so it's hard to tell how much is too much. And even though the latest research shows caffeine doesn't dehydrate our bodies as much as we once thought, too much sugar can.
“When a high level of sugar is in the blood stream the body cannot get the water into the cells that it needs because the water is busy trying to dilute concentration of sugar in the blood stream,” says Edison.
So, to avoid the spike-and-crash effect of energy drinks she says go for "real food" carbohydrate-protein combinations--which will give you more stable energy for peak performance.
“ Things like an apple and some peanut butter, some crackers with a little bit of cheese, some yogurt and granola or having cereal with milk on it are great combinations. Or even putting a hard boiled egg along with your bagel.”
She says it's best to have a hearty meal 3-4 hours before a game. It gives the body enough energy, and *time* to absorb it. Then, one hour before: a light snack-especially if it's a longer game--but skip the junk stuff. Too much fat keeps the body from absorbing the carbohydrates it needs to perform. She also says there is now strong research that high fructose corn syrup in many of those foods keeps you from "feeling full"--so you tend to eat more.
Check out our “web extra” to find out what kind of non-caffeinated beverage helps kids recover better after a workout than energy drinks or even water.
Below is more great information from Sport Dietitian Emily Edison and her recommended websites:
On the appetite regulation and HFCS (high fructose corn syrup) I think it is important to note that the research is still in early stages, but it seems as if there may be a link between HFSC and inhibition of Leptin production. It think the more important point with HFCS is that it comes in products that do not give you long standing energy (cookies, Twinkies, pop) and has little or no nutrients.
As for caffeine, a little (1-2 cups coffee per day) is ok and is linked with being a sport enhancing aid (thus why it is banned from NCAA in high levels). NCAA does not ban caffeine for health risks (because there are few if any healthy risks with caffeine, aside from addiction). As a sport enhancing aid it helps us think we are doing less work than we are (i.e. we can work harder) and may help us use more fat for fuel.
If someone wanted to use an energy drink, I would highly recommend diluting it down to about half with sparkling water and drinking it slowly. I would recommend drinking it close to the time for competition and make sure that is DOES NOT replace food. There are no shortcuts to better performance!
Momentum Nutrition and Fitness
NCAA site all about what drugs/substances are banned or limited on use
Gatorade Sports Science Institute
Web Extra:
“One of the things I see with young athletes is high fat foods coming into the body before a practice or before an event, says Sports Dietitian Emily Edison. Her office is on the University of Washington campus.
“What ends up happening is that high fat content in the meal actually inhibits carbohydrates from being available for the body and because fat takes a long time to digest we don't want to be putting it in pre-event or pre-sport.”
“Try to really focus on whole foods and get the kids to think about what they are putting in their body.”
“When we are talking about food for sport it's really important that we address that high carbohydrates are the number one thing for athletes. So when we talk about high carbohydrate foods, we are talking about things like whole cereals, we talk about whole grain crackers, we talk about fruits and vegetables, like blueberries which are high antioxidant food. If we get more antioxidants in the body we see less damage to the muscle and the system overall.”
“ So, younger athletes are we are growing and developing, I think it's even more important to think about what we are putting in the body because the tissues are all still developing, the bones the brains, the muscles, and so if we are really particular of the foods we put in there we may develop a stronger athlete down the road. So I try to get them to think about products that have a lot of a lot of calcium in them so they are making stronger bones. Things like chocolate milk, dairy cheese, and yogurt. Things that are help calcium absorption are vitamin D and vitamin D we also get from dairy.”
“And we talk about the chocolate milk being a great recovery drink for the athletes just to throw into their bag and drink after they are running off of the field and the recovery piece is that chocolate milk has high carbohydrates. It also has a little bit of protein in there to help repair and rebuild muscle tissue, but the carbohydrates are what going to fill the muscles and the liver back up with glycogen.”
“We found that the chocolate milk performed better than the other two recovery drinks in repeated bouts of exercise.”
“We do use some products that are calorie replacement drinks for certain athletes if they need to gain weight, but I'm actually a huge fan of milk and you can actually take dry milk powder, non-fat dry milk powder, and add it to milk to boost the protein content.”
“So immediately post exercise the muscles are really thirsty for carbohydrates and we want to make sure we get those in right away because over time the amount you can actually absorb goes down and then if we can't absorb as much, the next day when we hit the playing field we don't have as much energy stored in the body.”
“The foods that you choose afterwards are your recovery, it's the thing that's going to prepare you for the next day and help to repair any muscle tissue that you might have done.”
“I know adults are cutting back on their carbohydrates a little bit. They're not choosing to have the large portions of pasta and the large portions of rice the dinner time and don't necessarily need that, because they are not as active, but what has happened in a lot of families is that they've actually eliminated the carbohydrate and dinner and the kids, the active sporting child, needs to have that carbohydrate.”
“I think having a combination of carbohydrate and protein together, so things like an apple and some peanut butter or some crackers with a little bit of cheese and some yogurt and granola, having cereal with milk on it are great combinations.”
“As kids are growing and developing this nutrition piece is really vital to their long term success as an athlete.”