Only a balanced and healthy diet helps to maintain or improve overall health
FAISALABAD: In Pakistani culture, the lore is that sugary foods give energy and strength and are required for physical and mental work. This is nothing but a myth. Energy drinks are aggressively marketed with the claim that these products provide health benefits. There are no actual studies proving the claim, though. One thing is for sure: these drinks contain caffeine and other ingredients that are, if anything, harmful to the health. For a quarter of a century now, the health of Pakistanis has been damaged by the use of products which were advertised on TV as giving instant energy. Many energy drinks contain sugar or other sweeteners, herbal extracts, taurine, and amino acids. Sugary food eating boosts the energy level for maximum 1-2 hours — due to the instant release of the chemicals insulin & adrenaline. Release of these two chemicals gives the impression of energy in the person — but after 2 hours, one experiences “sugar crash” with the person feeling weak and depleted. Most of the effects of energy drinks on cognitive performance, such as increased attention and reaction speed, are primarily due to the presence of caffeine.
Only a balanced and healthy diet helps to maintain or improve overall health. Therefore, people should eat food with slow releasing carbohydrates which release energy slowly into the bloodstream and give long-term energy to the body — over 8-10 hours after eating such complex carbohydrates.
Engineer Mansoor Ahmed
Published in The Express Tribune, March 31st, 2017.
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