Gatorade Research Paper

Gatorade, one of my favorite drinks, is one of the most well known sports drinks in the world. It is sold in over 80 countries and has been around for half of a century. Many well known athletes, such as Dwight Howard and Derek Jeter sponsor Gatorade, which help it to sell 100 billion ounces every year (10 Thirst Quenching facts). However, it made me wonder, what ingredients were in Gatorade, and how healthy they are. Surprisingly, there are many ingredients that go into the drink. Ingredients that I did know were water, sugar, salt, and citric acid. There were also several mystery ingredients that I did not know, such as Dextrose, Sodium Citrate, Monopotassium Phosphate, and Gum Arabic. This led me to research, what were these ingredients are all about. The first Ingredient that was a mystery to me was Dextrose. Research led me to discover its many uses, and popularity. Dextrose is a form of glucose, derived from starches, that is a commonly used ingredient in packaged foods. It is very popular in packaged foods because it is widely available, and affordable. Dextrose is also commonly used in baking products and desserts, and is used as an additive to sweeten processed goods. Dextrose is about 20% less sweet than sucrose and helps to give Gatorade a little sweetness.
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I found out that Gatorade is not bad for you, unless you drink gallons of the stuff everyday, or are diabetic. Generally speaking, the ingredients appear to be safe. I found it interesting to see how many ingredients were in Gatorade, and all of the different purposes for them being there. I feel this assignment has increased my appreciation for Gatorade. I now have a better understanding of the ingredients, why they are there, and what they do. Discovering all those mystery ingredients did not change my preference. Gatorade will still be one of my favorite