Coconut Water Has Five Times The Potassium Of Gatorade

No, coconut water has not been a frequent sponsor of televised sports events, as are Gatorade or Powerade, yet now comes a researcher from Indiana University Southeast in New Albany who argues that perhaps it should be. Speaking at the 244^th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society, Chhandashri Bhattacharya said her analysis of coconut water showed that the naturally occurring beverage is an excellent sports drink for most moderate exercise, with five times more potassium (which relieves cramps) than Gatorade or Powerade. Coconut water was also found to have 400 mg/liter of sodium, compared to 600 for the other two drinks, and it had comparable quantities of magnesium and carbohydrates as the other drinks. The price? Pretty much the same for all three beverages: $2 to $3 for 8- to 12-oz containers.  Coconut water, now sold by several brands, including  Vita Coco, O.N.E. Coconut Water, and Zico is growing in popularity, but it’s still several laps behind the heavily promoted commercial drinks.