Effects of Beer, Non-Alcoholic Beer and Water Consumption before Exercise on Fluid and Electrolyte Homeostasis in Athletes.

Mauricio Castro-Sepulveda,Hermann Zbinden-Foncea,Carlos Jorquera,Cristian Álvarez,Rodrigo Ramírez-Campillo,Sebastián Astudillo,Neil Johannsen

doi:10.3390/nu8060345

Abstract

Fluid and electrolyte status have a significant impact on physical performance and health. Pre-exercise recommendations cite the possibility of consuming beverages with high amounts of sodium. In this sense, non-alcoholic beer can be considered an effective pre-exercise hydration beverage. This double-blind, randomized study aimed to compare the effect of beer, non-alcoholic beer and water consumption before exercise on fluid and electrolyte homeostasis. Seven male soccer players performed 45 min of treadmill running at 65% of the maximal heart rate, 45 min after ingesting 0.7 L of water (W), beer (AB) or non-alcoholic beer (NAB). Body mass, plasma Na+ and K+ concentrations and urine specific gravity (USG) were assessed before fluid consumption and after exercise. After exercise, body mass decreased (p < 0.05) in W (−1.1%), AB (−1.0%) and NAB (−1.0%). In the last minutes of exercise, plasma Na+ was reduced (p < 0.05) in W (−3.9%) and AB (−3.7%), plasma K+ was increased (p < 0.05) in AB (8.5%), and USG was reduced in W (−0.9%) and NAB (−1.0%). Collectively, these results suggest that non-alcoholic beer before exercise could help maintain electrolyte homeostasis during exercise. Alcoholic beer intake reduced plasma Na+ and increased plasma K+ during exercise, which may negatively affect health and physical performance, and finally, the consumption of water before exercise could induce decreases of Na+ in plasma during exercise.

Highlights

Fluid and electrolyte status have a significant impact on physiological homeostasis and may impact physical performance [1,2], cognitive performance [3] and overall health [4,5].Physical performance decrements have been observed with less than 2% loss of body mass
The sample size was computed according to the changes observed in peak urine specific gravity (d = 0.01 g/mL; SD = 0.005) in a group of soccer players submitted to the same exercise and non-alcoholic beer protocol applied in this study
All trials showed a significant (p < 0.01) body mass reduction, no significant differences were observed between trials regarding relative changes (%) or after-exercise absolute values (Table 3)

Summary

Introduction

Fluid and electrolyte status have a significant impact on physiological homeostasis and may impact physical performance [1,2], cognitive performance [3] and overall health [4,5].Physical performance decrements have been observed with less than 2% loss of body mass. In spite of current recommendations for improving fluid and electrolyte status in sports, hydration strategies of athletes are far from optimal [8,9] with hypohydration and dehydration being common. Pre-exercise recommendations cite the possibility of consuming foods and beverages with high amounts of sodium to reduce the amount of fluid loss and improve fluid balance [6,17]. In this sense, sport drinks are a common option due to their considerable sodium content (e.g., 300–400 mg/L). There is a commercial explosion in non-alcoholic beers, which claim to have a similar nutrient composition without the negative effects of alcohol consumption

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