First in Thirst: How Gatorade Turned the Science of Sweat into a Cultural Phenomenon

First in Thirst: How Gatorade Turned the Science of Sweat into a Cultural Phenomenon. 2005. Darren Rovell. New York: AMACOM. 243 pages.

This is an excellent case study of how a quality product has survived and captured the lion's share of the sports drink market. Clearly, in 1965 the simple idea of a sports drink was to replace fluids lost through perspiration. Since sweat is mostly made up of water and various salts (or electrolytes)-sodium, potassium, and magnesium-the task was well defined. So the first Gatorade was concocted with water, sodium, and potassium with some glucose to provide an energy boost. Lemons were also used to flavor the drink that became the mainstay of the University of Florida's football team called the Gators (pp. 17-18).

The concoction was developed by Dr. Robert Cade, a 37-year old associate professor of medicine who specialized in kidney disease, along with the assistance of graduate students, other research physicians, and coaches. Through careful research, experimentation, and some...