People use sports drinks to replace water (rehydrate) and electrolytes lost through sweating after activity. Electrolytes are minerals, such as potassium, calcium, sodium, and magnesium, that keep the body’s balance of fluids at the proper level. You lose water and electrolytes when you sweat.

Water is a healthier choice — especially when you aren’t doing an intense workout or exercising on a hot, humid day — because the added sugars and calories in sports drinks are associated with a higher risk of developing and experiencing complications from conditions like obesity and type 2 diabetes, she adds.

The recommendation is adults and children should only have sports drinks during extended and heavy exercise that lasts longer than an hour. “Water, water and water should be the beverage of choice for hydration before, during and after physical activity or exercise routines lasting less than one hour,” Dr. Nish says.

One of the main drawbacks of sports drinks is that they contain sugar – though only half the sugar of most soft drinks, explains Middleton – and calories. “So, if you’re at an aerobics class, you don’t need a sports drink, as it’s just adding extra calories while you’re working hard to burn them off,” she says.

Compared to a life without a competitive sports career, a higher socioeconomic status and the avoidance of general risks during the sports career lead to a longer life span. In contrast, with increasing training load, sport-specific risk factors reduce the life span.

Athletes and other residents of the Olympic Village will be permitted to drink alcohol in their rooms, but only if they are alone, Olympic organizers decreed June 20.

7 Healthy Alcoholic Drinks

• Dry Wine (Red or White) Calories: 84 to 90 calories per glass.
• Ultra Brut Champagne. Calories: 65 per glass.
• Vodka Soda. Calories: 96 per glass.
• Mojito. Calories: 168 calories per glass.
• Whiskey on the Rocks. Calories: 105 calories per glass.
• Bloody Mary. Calories: 125 calories per glass.
• Paloma.

Yes, you can still drink beer and be very fit. Over 90 million Americans enjoy drinking beer! Drinking moderately has been proven by many doctors, as well as the New England Journal of Medicine, to be a healthy component of longevity.

Drinking small amounts of alcohol — a shot of hard liquor or a glass of beer or wine — on a consistent daily basis does have a few proven health benefits. Specifically, it reduces the risk of heart attacks and strokes caused by blocked arteries by 10 to 15 percent.