BY STEVE BORN
HEED is the ideal way to fulfill your energy, hydration, and electrolytic mineral needs, whether you’re a:
- Full-time athlete
- Daily exerciser
- Weekend warrior
- Young athlete participating in youth sports
- Construction worker, landscaper, or other high-energy worker
- Homemaker performing chores in and out of the house
That’s right. Whatever category (or categories) you fit into, HEED is the smart and healthy way to keep you going strong! The key reasons for this are both what’s in the product and what’s not.
Take a look at the nutrition facts for HEED, and you’ll notice a couple of very important things regarding the carbohydrate component:
1) No artificial colors, flavors, or sweeteners. A quick check of the label ingredients on competing products will show you that there are still plenty of drink mixes out there loaded with this junk. With absolutely no health benefits to be gained from consuming these artificial ingredients (but plenty of potential negative effects), it’s guaranteed that you won’t receive any athletic performance-enhancing benefits either. HEED contains no artificial ingredients, only healthy sweeteners—a stevia and xylitol—and natural flavors. That’s it.
2) No added sugars. Here’s the carbohydrate/sugar content of HEED, along with the ingredient list:
Total Carbohydrate 27g
Dietary Fiber 0g
Total Sugars 2g
Added Sugars 0g
Ingredients: Maltodextrin, Xylitol, Natural Flavor, Calcium Chelate, Potassium Chelate, Magnesium Chelate,
Salt, L-Carnosine, Stevia, Glycine, Tyrosine, Manganese Chelate, Chromium Polynicotinate.
Take a look at both and here’s what you’ll see:
- Our carbohydrate source is maltodextrin, a complex carbohydrate, and there are 27 grams in one serving.
- Embedded within those 27 grams are 2 grams of carbohydrates classified as sugar, meaning one- or two-chain molecules.
- There are ZERO grams (0g) of added sugars
The first point, the use of maltodextrin, is undeniably important because:
- Your body can digest more calories with greater efficiency from maltodextrin than it can from one- or two-chain (aka “simple”) sugars.
- The quick-acting energy supplied from maltodextrin is smoother, more consistent (no wild energy fluctuations), and longer lasting than sugar.
The second and third points are tied in together. They’re important because they distinguish whether the sugar (again, defined as a one- or two-chain molecule) is “part of the whole” like the fructose that naturally occurs in a piece of fruit, or if it has simply been added to the product as a separate ingredient.
Because the sugar content that naturally occurs in maltodextrin is part of the entire complex carbohydrate structure (it’s not added separately), the body is able to use maltodextrin more efficiently as a fuel source compared to sugars that are added to the product. For more on this topic, see the article “Simple Sugars and Complex Carbohydrates – An Incompatible Combination.”
3) No citric acid. When teeth are regularly bathed in a citric acid solution, whether it’s added to stimulate saliva production and provide a tart taste or chelated to a mineral (e.g., calcium citrate), permanent damage usually results. Citric acid isn’t necessary or helpful in a sports drink, so it’s not in HEED.
4) Appropriate amounts of sodium. Nearly everyone is consuming far too much sodium in their daily diet, and it negatively impacts athletic performance and, more importantly, overall health. That’s why sufficient, not excessive, amounts of sodium are included in HEED. Equally as important, HEED contains a full-spectrum electrolyte profile that more adequately and completely replenishes electrolytes.
For 15 years and counting, HEED—with its superior-quality ingredients, along with its subtle, refreshing taste—continues to be the deliciously healthy and highly effective alternative to the syrupy swill disguised as sports drinks. Containing only beneficial ingredients (in effective amounts!) and devoid of all the earlier-mentioned junk, HEED is exactly what you want and need!
