Why Athletes Frequently Spit During Sports Activities.
The FIFA World Cup 2022 is currently taking place in Qatar. If you have watched any matches so far or other sporting events, you have surely noticed that players often spit on the field during games. But why do they do this? According to experts, there are several medical factors contributing to this habit.
Dr. Udit Kapoor, a senior consultant at Asian Hospital, Faridabad (India), explains that saliva in the mouth thickens when a person engages in high-intensity physical activities, such as football matches. Therefore, players should spit it out.
Cristiano Ronaldo of the Portugal national team. (Photo: Balls).
“A type of mucus called MUC5B makes saliva thicker and thus harder to swallow. Therefore, it is best to spit it out,” Dr. Kapoor explains why football, cricket, and rugby players are allowed to spit saliva on the ground.
Dr. Nandlal Pathak, an orthopedic and sports physiotherapy specialist, shares a similar view. He told Indianexpress that saliva thickens right after any exercise or physical activity.
Saliva proteins may include amylase, lysozyme, lactoferrin, chromogranin A, or MUC5B, regulated by the autonomic nervous system and the immune system.
Dr. Pathak also mentions another reason: dehydration occurs because players breathe through their mouths. Dehydration causes saliva to evaporate. Sweat also leads to dehydration, resulting in thicker saliva, and thus players need to spit more frequently.
Although athletes can swallow saliva, they often spit it out if the amount is excessive.
Additionally, you may notice athletes drinking water and spitting it out during breaks or even while the game is ongoing.
This method, known as carbohydrate mouth rinsing, involves spitting out a carbohydrate solution. Many studies suggest that such rinsing can enhance athletic performance compared to sipping water, which may cause gastrointestinal issues such as bloating.
Research published in the European Journal of Sport Science noted that carbohydrate mouth rinsing improves performance in physical activities. The authors examined data from 12 healthy men in their 20s and found that they could jump higher, perform more squats, sprint faster, and remain more alert after rinsing with carbohydrates.
Another similar analysis published in the International Journal of Sports Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism showed that 12 male athletes experienced less fatigue after carbohydrate mouth rinsing.
However, a study published in the Journal of Sports Science asserted that there was no significant difference in performance for participants engaged in endurance activities.
Fifteen female athletes ran for 60 minutes, once with carbohydrate rinsing and once without. Accordingly, the carbohydrate solution seemed to have no effect. Thus, carbohydrate mouth rinsing impacts fast, immediate activities like sprinting more than long-distance, endurance events.
Dr. Pathak stated: “Carbohydrate mouth rinsing is primarily used to enhance performance in activities requiring sprints. Additionally, this method does not have any effect on reducing protein concentration in the mouth, which is the main cause of thick saliva.”
