Knowledge of Athletes about Proper Hydration ^†

Abstract

Background and objectives: Water makes up 50 to 70% of the human body. All cellular processes take place in water. Water is lost from the body through urination, digestion, sweating, breathing and tears. Along with water, sweat also contains a significant amount of sodium, potassium, a small amount of magnesium and chloride. It is extremely important to replace everything that is lost: water, minerals (electrolytes) and vitamins. The main goal of this research is to examine the level of knowledge of athletes about proper hydration. Method: A total of 249 respondents in five Montenegrin cities participated in this research. The first part of the questionnaire that was used in this research referred to the type of sport that they practice and the level of competition, as well as the place that they come from. For the purposes of this research, anthropometric measurements and BMI, as well as determination of body composition, including total water content, were performed. Results and discussion: Of the 249 respondents, 71.5% were male and 28.5% were female. When it comes to water intake, the largest number of athletes drink seven or more glasses of water during the day (56.6%), 26.5% drink five to six glasses of water, 12.9% drink three to four glasses of water, while 4.0% drink one to two glasses of water. This research shows that athletes do not drink enough water during the day. The second group of questions was related to athletes’ knowledge about fluid intake, during or after the training process, as well as during a sports competition. Here, the athletes showed a higher level of knowledge. The average level of knowledge was 43.80 ± 22.96. A total of 43.0% know that thirst is not an adequate indicator of the need for water during training. A total of 82.7% know that fluids must be consumed before, during and after physical activity, which indicates that the behavior is not in accordance with the knowledge of the respondents. Regardless of the fact that the athletes included in our research showed a higher level of knowledge in the answers to questions related to knowledge about fluid intake, they do not drink enough water during the day.