# Is Gatorade a sham? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 7, 2006, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-gatorade-a-sham/359760 "2006-06-07T16:45:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2006, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-gatorade-a-sham/359760/41 "2006-06-08T23:21:42Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Oookaaay… > > Speaking of pickles… …and they’d better taste salty ---
**Author:** ![kimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f0a364/32.png) [@kimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kimera)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2006, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-gatorade-a-sham/359760/42 "2006-06-08T23:35:06Z")
Evil Captor’s post wasn’t entirely off-topic, see [here](http://basketbawful.blogspot.com/2006/03/gatorade-conspiracy.html) for the truth about Gatorade!! ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2006, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-gatorade-a-sham/359760/43 "2006-06-08T23:48:00Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > (So tempting to try to get dehydrated again for that yummy sweet dill experience…but I think the first aid people would kill me!) Aye, by my teeth, that I would do! As for why being dehydrated makes pickles taste sweet, I have absolutely no idea. Way back when, I thought it was just Faire folklore, and probably originated by the mongers. I’ve since learned that is is true. I’ve tried googling and while the answer is probably out there, it’s buried under all sorts of recipes for making pickles and people selling pickles, and food dehydrators and whatnot. Attempting to search “taste perversion” brought up mountains of drug side-effects. ---
**Author:** ![Carol\_the\_Impaler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Carol\_the\_Impaler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carol_the_Impaler)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2006, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-gatorade-a-sham/359760/44 "2006-06-09T00:04:44Z")
> [@tremorviolet](#): > > I’m pretty sure this doesn’t have anything to do with Gatorade… I assumed **Evil Captor** was sitting at his keyboard so dehydrated that he was hallucinating… 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2006, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-gatorade-a-sham/359760/45 "2006-06-09T00:21:43Z")
> [@niblet\_head](#): > > I assumed **Evil Captor** was sitting at his keyboard so dehydrated that he was hallucinating… > > 🆒 I just assumed it would have to be one heck of a porn shoot to get that dehydrated. ---
**Author:** ![Carol\_the\_Impaler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Carol\_the\_Impaler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carol_the_Impaler)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2006, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-gatorade-a-sham/359760/46 "2006-06-09T00:26:42Z")
Yes, well, I was going to reference a loss of fluids. But then I didn’t. 🆒🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2006, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-gatorade-a-sham/359760/47 "2006-06-09T00:41:53Z")
No. It’s just artifical. I suggest you try the organic line they just released. It’s gathered from the finist young women after a workout. Try the extra virgin organic. Its only from the first wringing of the towel. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2006, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-gatorade-a-sham/359760/48 "2006-06-09T01:20:55Z")
I apologize. I’ve been wondering where the heck my new thread on GQ was. Now I know. It was the dehydration that did it … that’s it, the dehydration … not ordinary dumbness at all, you understand … :smack: :smack::smack: ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2006, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-gatorade-a-sham/359760/49 "2006-06-09T03:28:11Z")
I believe that the taste of the pickles changes because of your bodies need for the salt. The saltiness of foods always alters subjectively according to your body’s needs. Whenever I eat chips I reach a point where they become overpoweringly salty long before I finish them. I love white bread on hot days but on cool days it often tastes salty to me. [Here](http://www.psha-inc.com/guai-support/sf/TasteTests.htm) is a brief piece on the taste tests in Dr. Lendon Smith’s _Feed Your Body Right_ which indicate that the change in taste applies across a range of substances. ---
**Author:** ![antechinus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/fbc32d/32.png) [@antechinus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/antechinus)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2006, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-gatorade-a-sham/359760/50 "2006-06-09T04:20:04Z")
An electrolyte drink is designed to contain the same concentration of salts as what you would find in the blood plasma (isotonic). This allows the liquid to be quickly passed through the stomach (because there is not alot of sugar present) and into the intestine where is more quickly absorbed into the blood (because it is isotonic). The salts also reduce urine production. Plain water is not quickly absorbed through the intestines because it tries to ‘suck’ salts out of the blood first. This stops you being thirsty. When **DontAsk** is eating chips, the increase in blood osmolality increases until salty things are no longer desirable - and water (or beer) becomes more desirable. Plain water also makes you want to pee more. High osmolality drinks - like coke - sucks water out of the blood before it is absorbed. The higher conc. of sugar also slows the passage of the drink through the stomach into the intestine. If about 7% carbs (sugar) are added to the drink, it will pass through the stomach into the intestines as quickly as water and carry this fuel with it. This is sports drink. [medicdirectsport](http://www.medicdirectsport.com/sportsnutrition/default.asp?step=4&pid=91) ---
**Author:** ![Will\_Repair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a698b9/32.png) [@Will\_Repair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Will_Repair)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2006, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-gatorade-a-sham/359760/51 "2006-06-10T19:46:37Z")
Wonder if anyone has confimed Gator U’s findings or if it’s just a placebo effect. ---
**Author:** ![tremorviolet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@tremorviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tremorviolet)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2006, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-gatorade-a-sham/359760/52 "2006-06-10T23:51:31Z")
[QUOTE=Will Repair] Wonder if anyone has confimed Gator U’s findings or if it’s just a placebo effect. [/QUOTE] Which findings in particular? That an isotonic solution will better (than plain water) rehydrate a person losing lots of fluids? Or that Gatorade will help the average casual exerciser improve performance? If the former, yes, many times. If the latter, no, not really. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-gatorade-a-sham/359760.md?page=2)