Uniwersytet Ekonomiczny w Poznaniu ZESZYTY NAUKOWE nr 151, rok 2010

Maria Sielicka, Bogdan Pacho³ek Poznañ University of Economics

SPORTS DRINKS IN STUDENTS’ OPINION

Introduction

Sports drinks are the drinks which demonstrate the osmotic pressure comparable to the osmotic pressure of the human blood serum. The osmotic pressure varies between 270 and 330 mOsm/kg . Sports drinks are typically designed to pre- vent dehydration, supply electrolytes to replace losses due to perspiration and provide to augment available energy [4, 6, 13, 16] Sports drinks were developed in 1960s. The first , , is nowadays produced by PepsiCo. It was created in 1965 by American researchers working for the University of Florida Gators football team. The product’s task was to counteract the loss of sportsmen efficiency during the physical exertion in hot weather. It decreased the risk of dehydration and increased performance [14]. The composition of wide variety of sports drinks’ brands slightly differs. Most of the drinks present on the market contain 6 to 8% carbohydrates and can be clas- sified as having low concentration (less than 10%). The carbohy- drates, including , fructose and , are the suppliers of immediately available energy for the body. Some of the newer beverages also contain oligo- saccharides such as maltodextrin, which constitute an energy reserve without a resultant increase in osmolality. Moreover, sports drinks contain small quanti- ties of electrolytes, such as sodium, potassium, magnesium, calcium, chlorides. They are added in order to improve palatability and to help maintain fluid/electro- lyte balance. Those ingredients are significant for proper body functioning. Sub- stantial loss of sodium during exercise concludes to muscle cramps, thermal swelling and decrease in blood pressure [4, 10]. The addition of , espe- cially C, E, B complexes is common. They are mostly added for cells pro- tection and to support the digestion of carbohydrates [16]. The mechanism of favorable role of sports drinks is not completely explained. Generally, many studies conclude that the consumption of sports drink during prolonged exercise increases time to fatigue, decreases the amount of time needed to complete a predetermined task or increases the quantity of work performed in 48 Maria Sielicka, Bogdan Pacho³ek a given time. It has been implied that, during long lasting exertion, fatigue may be caused by depletion of the body’s glycogen stores and also dehydration. Sports drinks, thanks to balanced formula, hydrate the body and help to prolong and in- tensify the training without increasing core temperature [7]. Sports drinks are often compared with water because of rehydration abilities. However, the isotonic character of described beverages ensures faster absorption. What is more, sports drinks are eagerly consumed thanks to available array of at- tractive flavors and colors [7]. There is little evidence for unfavorable effects of consumption of sports drinks. Results of researches regarding this issue vary. Rees, Loyn, and McAndrew [12] found that many sports drinks were erosive to tooth enamel when compared with water and orange juice. On the other hand, the studies conducted by Coombes [5] and Mathew, Cassamassimo and Hayes [9] found no association. According to Hopper et al. [8], the addition of calcium to sports drinks may lessen the erosive potential to tooth enamel. To prevent any po- tential risk to teeth from these beverages, the drinks should be consumed chilled with using a straw, to minimize contact with mouth cavity [10]. The production and sale of sports drinks is a lucrative and competitive indus- try, which is demonstrated by the rapidly growing variety of products being mar- keted. Between 2002–2008 there were over 1800 new sports drinks launched worldwide with 550 launches in 2005 [3]. According to data from Beverage Mar- keting Corporation consumption of these drinks in United States in 2006 achieved 5.1 billion liters and increased 12% in comparison to 2006. The average American consumer drinks approximately 17 liters annually. The leader of Ame- rican market is Gatorade, which has more than 80% market share of sports drink category. holds the number two market position in the segment with a 13% market share. Both brands broaden their assortment by introducing on the market sports drinks with new flavours. According to Mintel, 36% of consumers who decide to buy sports drink acquire them primarily for the taste [11]. In Poland the sports drink category is growing constantly. Between December 2007 and November 2008 the value of the segment achieved 116.5 million zloty and 15.9 million liters was purchased [2]. Sports drinks are mostly consumed by people aged 20–45. Majority of consumers inhabit big urban areas, has secondary or higher education, their earnings exceed the national average. Among well-known brands we may find: Powerade, Gatorade and Isostar. According to ACNielsen the leader of sports drinks category in Poland is Powerade brand with 78.7% market share [15] (data from 2006). Taking into consideration consumer trends with the increasing emphasis on healthy lifestyle, fitness, regular sport taking to keep the organism and body in good condition, the sports drinks have a great opportunity to develop. Unfortu- nately, the awareness of the consumers in the scope of sports drinks is low. Sports drinks are often confused with energy drinks. Many people use these terms inter- Sports drinks in students’ opinion 49 changeably, while in reality energy drinks and sports drinks are very different. Energy drinks are promoted to improve concentration and both physical and men- tal performance. Moreover, the ingredients of these two drink categories differ a lot. Energy drinks contain biostimulators, like caffeine, taurine, glucoronolac- ton, which stimulate the central nervous system. These ingredients are usually not present in sports drinks [1]. The aim of the study is to gather students’ opinions concerning sports drinks and get acquainted with their awareness and buying habits in that field. The paper tries to figure out if the declaration of regular sport training has an impact on knowledge about sports drinks of the respondents.

Methodology

The study was carried out in 2008 as a personal interview using a questionnaire. The sample covered the students, aged 18–27, of different Polish universities based in Poznañ, Wroc³aw, Jelenia Góra, Gdañsk, Szczecin, Warszawa. The majority of respondents, over 50%, were people between age 22 and 23. Every forth student taking part in a poll was 20 or 21 years old. There were 142 respon- dents, 60% representing female and 40% male population, respectively. In terms of the place of residence, respondents mostly live at their family home or in stu- dent apartment, seldom in a dormitory or own flat. Every third respondent declared regular sport training (with average 8 hours of exercising per week); 52.8% of questioned students admit consuming sports drinks.

Results and discussion

The respondents were asked to give definition of sports drinks. In general, 40.1% of respondents defined them as a source of the minerals, vitamins, carbohydrates and water after exercise. Some respondents pointed out that sports drinks are the drinks which improve physical performance, increase efficiency and strengthen (7.0%). The responds seldom included the statement that sports drinks are used during intensive exercise and assigned to people physically active. All these defi- nitions were appropriate to sports drinks. On the other hand, every fourth answered that sports drinks are energy drinks, which stimulate and improve con- centration. Above definition is incorrect, because it applies to energy drinks such as Red Bull, Tiger. Table 1 presents the list of given definitions. Taking into consideration declaration of regular sport training, one third of non-athletes gave incorrect definition (34.8%). In the second place, they answer- ed that sport drinks contain or complete the minerals, vitamins, carbohydrates and 50 Maria Sielicka, Bogdan Pacho³ek

Table 1. Definition of sports drinks

Percentage of answers of respondents non-consu- Definition non- consumers of general athletes mers of -athletes sports drinks sports drinks Complete after exercise/contain minerals, vitamins, carbohy- drates, water 40.1 56.5 33.7 49.3 29.9 Used during intensive exercise, for people physically active 2.1 0 3.3 1.3 3.0 Improve physical performance, increase efficiency, strengthen 7.0 6.5 6.5 5.3 7.5 Add energy 8.5 8.7 8.7 5.3 10.4 Energy drinks, stimulate, improve concentration 25.4 4.3 34.8 28.0 20.9 Other 5.6 13.0 1.0 5.3 10.4 No answer 11.3 10.9 12.0 5.5 17.9 water after exercise (33.7%). On the other hand, majority of athletes defined cor- rectly discussed beverages. Only two persons belonging to the sport active group described sports drinks as energy drinks. Generally, it can be assumed that people declaring regular exercising have more knowledge and bigger awareness concer- ning two different groups of beverages that are often mix up. The further analysis of given definitions of sports drinks was based on con- sumption criterion. Almost a half of respondents (49.3%), who declared consum- ing sports drinks, answered correctly stating that sports drinks cater for , vitamin and water losses after exercise. The same definition was most common among non-consumers of sports drinks (29.9%), but the number of responds in this case was much lower. The high percentage of not defining sport drinks by non-consumers is justified. Moreover, the study showed that majority of respondents, who are both athlet- es and consumers of sports drinks, were able to define those beverages properly (68%). The next question concerned the composition of sports drinks. The respon- dents were asked to mark if the sports drinks contain minerals, vitamins, caffeine and taurine (Figure 1). More than three fourth of respondents declaring regular sport activity claimed that described drinks contain minerals and vitamins. Also among non-athletes this answer was dominating (respectively 70.2% and 71.3%). In the scope of the two other ingredients, the responds of the groups slightly differ. Caffeine and taurine are not present in sports drinks, but majority of non-athletes marked them (respectively 65.9% and 51.6%). On the contrary, the athletes chose correct answer more often. This outcome may be a base to formulate a statement Sports drinks in students’ opinion 51

A 100 15. 6 22. 2 80 57. 8 51. 1 60 84. 4 40 77. 8 48. 9 20 42. 2

0 minerals vitamins caffeine taurine B 100

80 29. 8 28. 7 34. 1 48. 4 60

40 70. 2 71. 3 65. 9 20 51. 6

0 minerals vitamins caffeine taurine

yes no Figure 1. Composition of sports drinks in athletes’ (A) and non-athletes’ (B) opinion (in %) that those students who are not training regularly have lesser knowledge in the field of sports drinks` composition as those ones who are the athletes. Analysis of obtained data concerning considered composition of sports drinks revealed that answers of consumers and non-consumers do not differ sig- nificantly. More than 75.0% of respondents in both groups agreed that described beverages contain minerals and vitamins. On the other hand, half of them incor- rectly marked caffeine and taurine. Generally, it might be concluded that con- sumption of sports drinks do not influence the level of knowledge in the range of ingredients. These suggestions are surprising and opposing to conclusions re- ceived in previous question. The conducted research confirmed that Powerade and Isostar are the most reco- gnized brands on the market of sports drinks in Poland (52.0%). More than 70% of athletes listed correct brands, while only half of non-athletes indicated them proper- ly. Unfortunately, many respondents belonging mainly to non sport active group, confused brands of sports drink and energy drink. As many as 42.9% of non-athle- 52 Maria Sielicka, Bogdan Pacho³ek tes mentioned brands like Red Bull, Tiger, Burn, R20, which represent energy drinks. These wrong answers appeared twice more often than in case of athletes. The similar situation was observed while comparing results obtained on the base on consumption criteria. Both consumers and non-consumers often indi- cated Powerade and Isostar as a well-known brand of sports drink. Bigger differ- ence could be noticed in case of Red Bull brand. Questioned students, who are not drinking those beverages, listed Red Bull much more often, which suggests their lower knowledge and awareness in the field of sports drinks brands. Recognizability of brands is shown in Table 2.

Table 2. Recognizability of brands of sport drinks

Percentage of answers of respondents Brand consumers of non-consumers general athletes non-athletes sports drinks of sports drinks Powerade 26.0 29.8 24.0 25.3 25.6 Isostar 26.0 27.9 25.0 25.3 28.2 Gatorade 3.0 8.7 0.0 4.6 2.6 Other sports drinks 3.0 5.8 1.5 4.0 0.0

Red Bull 17.0 11.5 19.9 16.7 20.5 Tiger 13.0 7.7 15.8 12.1 12.0 Burn 4.3 3.8 4.6 4.6 2.6 R20 1.7 0.0 2.6 1.7 1.7

Other 6.0 4.8 6.6 5.7 6.8

Sports drinks were created to cater sportsmen’ needs. The conducted study confirmed that sports drinks are popular among athletes, as it showed that 80.4% of them consume sports drinks. This result was doubled in comparison with non-athletes where only 39.6% drink described beverages. Taking into considera- tion the gender of respondents, 65.0% of questioned male students consumed sports drinks. While the number of female consumers was around one third lower and constituted for 45.0% of questioned women. The obtained data are consistent with results published by ACNielsen which shows that sport drinks are more often consumed by men [15]. Further research concerned respondents who declared consuming sports drinks. The aim was to determine the frequency and circumstances of consump- tion of sports drinks. Surveyed women drunk mostly once a month, while male students’ consumption was more frequent. Every third questioned men admitted to drink sports drinks once a week (Figure 2). Sports drinks in students’ opinion 53

AB

54.% 81.% 18.% 9 16. 2% 21.% 6 16.% 2

18.% 9

40.% 5 21.% 6 32.% 4

once a day few times a week once a week once a month seldom Figure 2. Consumption frequency of sports drinks – women (A) and men (B)

50 44. 8 38. 1 40 27. 0 27. 6 30 17. 5 19. 0 20 15. 9 10 52. 34. 16. 0 during sport after sport as thirst during learing other situations activities activities quenching drink

athletes non-athletes Figure 3. The circumstances of consuming sports drinks (in %)

Analysis of obtained data enabled to establish the conclusion that sports drinks are consumed for different reasons while taking into consideration sport activity criterion (Figure 3). Almost half of athletes (44.8%) consumed them du- ring sport activity, which was suitable. One fourth of this group declared drinking them after exercising, while only few considered sports drinks as thirst quenching beverages. However, non-athletes consumed them mostly during learning (38.1%), which is typical for consumption of energy drinks that are designed to stimulate and improve concentration. Surprisingly, every sixth non-athlete (15.9%) thought of this beverage as a thirst quenching drink. In comparison with athletes, it was five times more often (3.4%). The respondents were asked to enlist brands of sports drinks they often buy. Figure 4 presents the results. 54 Maria Sielicka, Bogdan Pacho³ek

39. 1 40

29. 7 30 25. 4 22. 2 23. 8 20 15. 9 10. 9 10 79. 47. 63. 63. 16. 31. 32. 0 Powerade Isostar Gatorade Red Bull Tiger Burn other athletes non-athletes Figure 4. Most frequently purchased brands of sports drinks (in %)

As many as 68.8% of athletes buy Powerade and Isostar, which are the most popular sports drinks brands on Polish market, while only few purchase brand Gatorade, the leader of American market [11]. The brands of energy drinks like Red Bull, Tiger, Burn constituted for small percentage (15.6%). On the other hand, non-athletes answered completely opposite. Almost a half indicated energy drinks brands as sports drinks brands they acquire. Gatorade brand was almost omitted.

Conclusions

Summarizing the results of the conducted research, in general, the awareness of respondents concerning sports drinks is low. The declaration of regular sport training has an impact on knowledge about sports drinks. In most cases the athlet- es are able to correctly define sports drinks and the circumstances of consump- tion. The athletes consume sports drinks twice more often than the non-athletes. Among the non-athletes, the awareness concerning the sports drinks is much lower. Sports drinks are more frequently confused with energy drinks in the range of the ingredients and brands.

References

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[3] A sporting challenge, Food & Drink Technology 2008, Vol. 7, Issue 6, March, p. 20–21 [4] Coombes J.S., Hamilton K.L., The effectiveness of commercially available sports drinks, Sports Medicine 2000, 29, p. 181–209 [5] Coombes, J., Sports drinks and dental erosion, American Journal of Dentistry 2005, 18, p. 101–104 [6] Ensminger A.H., Ensminger M.E., Konlande J.E., Robson J.R., Food & Nutrition Encyclopedia 2nd edition, CRC Press 1994 [7] Hill R.J., Bluck L.J.C., Davies P.S.W., The hydration ability of three commercially available sports drinks and water, Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport 2008, 11, p. 116–123 [8] Hooper S., West N., Sharif N., Smith S., North M., De’Ath J., et al. A comparison of enamel erosion by a new sports drink compared to two proprietary products: A controlled, crossover study in situ, Journal of Dentistry, 32, 2004, p. 541–545 [9] Mathew T., Cassamassimo P., Hayes J., Relationship between sports drinks and dental erosion in 304 university athletes, Caries Research 2002, 36, p. 281–287 [10] Meadows-Oliver M., Ryan-Krause P., Powering up with sports and energy drinks, Journal of Pediatric Health Care, 21, 2007, p. 413–416 [11] Miller R.K. et al., The 2008 Beverages Market Research Handbook, March 2008, p. 124–125 [12] Rees J., Loyn T., McAndrew R., The acidic and erosive potential of five sports drinks, European Journal of Prosthodontic and Restorative Dentistry 2005, 13, p. 186–190 [13] Report of the Scientific Committee on Food on composition and specification of food intended to meet the expenditure of intense muscular effort, especially for sportsmen, European Commission Health & Consumer Protection Directorate – General, published 28 February 2001, 24 [14] Ryan-Krause P., The score on high-tech sports nutrition for adolescents, Journal of Pediatric Health Care 1998, 12, p. 164–166 [15] Sylwiak A., Rynek napojów energetycznych: Napoje dla aktywnych, Hurt & Detal 2007, 5 (15), p. 24–26 [16] Ziegler E., Ziegler H., Flavourings: production, composition, applications, regula- tions, Wiley-VCH, Weinheim 1998

NAPOJE IZOTONICZNE W OPINII STUDENTÓW

Streszczenie

Napoje izotoniczne s¹ spo¿ywane s¹ w celu wyrównania ubytków wody i elektrolitów utraconych podczas wysi³ku oraz uzupe³nienia utraconej energii. Celem podjêtych badañ by³o zbadanie opinii studentów o napojach izotonicznych, a w szczególnoœci okreœleniu 56 Maria Sielicka, Bogdan Pacho³ek ich œwiadomoœci i preferencji zakupowych. Wyniki badania wskazuj¹, ¿e jedynie po³owa respondentów podaje prawid³ow¹ definicjê napojów izotonicznych. Studenci dekla- ruj¹cy uprawianie sportu w wiêkszoœci poprawnie definiuj¹, czym s¹ napoje izotoniczne, i wiedz¹, kiedy powinny byæ konsumowane. Natomiast wœród osób deklaruj¹cych nie- uprawianie sportu wiedza w zakresie badanych produktów jest ni¿sza. Wielokrotnie napoje izotoniczne by³y mylone z napojami energetycznymi.