Fad: Coconut Water

Claims:

Cholesterol Free

Fat Free

Super Hydrating

Nature's Sports Drink

Naturally Rich in Electrolytes

More Potassium than a banana

Are they true? Sure.

I'm probably a little late to tackle this current trend, but it's still a pretty hot topic around here. Just as acai and pomegranate juice were all the rage a couple years ago, now it's coconut water's turn. We will continue to see trends come and go through the years, it pretty much is determined by what we see in the hands of celebrities. Right? Like the antioxidant-rich beverages, there is nothing wrong with coconut water. Our problem is that when we hear something is good for us we go a little crazy. One article I read said that the coconut water industry went from $0 to 35 million in five years (probably even more now). That's coconuts!

Sure it may be a more natural recovery drink than artificially dyed, artificially colored, artificially flavored sports drinks, but those drinks are specially formulated to replenish our bodies after extremely intense hours of exercise. Experts claim that coconut water is a little too high in potassium and not high enough in sodium (which is more depleted after exercise). The truth is, most of us don't exercise enough or hard enough to actually need a recovery beverage of any sort. Especially not 3-4 year old soccer players who really only run for a total of 1.5 minutes...but, don't get me started on that.

My thoughts:

When it comes to post-workout, rather than shell out $3+ for a small juice box-sized drink, I'll stick to organic chocolate milk. It contains an ideal ratio of simple carbohydrate to lean protein, there is no protein in coconut water. Plus, it tastes better to me. Additionally, rather than trying to get your micronutrients from a beverage (of any sort) and spending your hard-earned money on something that will disappear in six sips, EAT A VARIETY OF FRUITS AND VEGETABLES!!! It can't be more simple than that! Instead of focusing on what is the next cure-all, amazing, get-everything-you-need in one bite food, stick to the basics - a varied, plant-based diet!

Post edit: This is not to say that if some one gave me free coconut water I wouldn't drink it. It's not a bad thing.

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