10/25/2012
Food for thought: I've posted on why I recommend water over sports drinks for kids. At a presentation yesterday, someone pointed out that chocolate milk is the trending sports recovery drink based on research. I asked who funded the research and they didn't know, so I looked it up and found that it was supported in part by the Dairy and Nutrition Council, Inc., who is dedicated to providing timely scientific information on the health benefits of milk, cheese and yogurt (so that dairy companies that fund them sell more dairy products).
Here are labels for reduced fat chocolate and fat free plain milk from Shamrock. 300 calories and 40g of sugar in the chocolate milk (which is about the same as a bag of skittles or a king sized snicker bar). IF you are a high endurance athlete that is sweating for a sustained period (cyclist or long distance runner, etc.), your body benefits from a boost of carbs, protein, and even a little sugar or salt helps retain water and regain some energy....but I'm not convinced that 40g of sugar is ideal and again, this only applies to high endurance training or competition....not kids.
As usual, try not to over think nutrition and keep it simple. Water is the best drink and eat foods from farms not factories.