The Root of All Sports Drinks?

Looking for something more exciting than water to drink after a workout? One alternative is Ginseng Up soda, an old brew recently reformulated with less sugar and less carbonation.

The New York-based company touts the soda--available at health food stores--as the “original sports drink.” It stops short of claiming the ancient ginseng root can improve athletic performance, but notes that some research suggests it may improve circulation and speed metabolic rate.

Is it worth a try?

Ginseng probably acts as a mild stimulant, says William Fink, an exercise physiologist at the Human Performance Laboratory at Ball State University in Muncie, Ind., who has researched sports drinks. “But I don’t think I’ll run right out and buy any,” he adds. In his studies, he has found water and the so-called sports drinks to be equally effective in fluid replacement after exercise that lasts 90 minutes or less. “Other studies have shown that a drink with sugar content is helpful after exercising more than an hour and a half,” he says.