The purpose of this experiment was to create a simple and inexpensive flame photometer to measure the concentration of sodium in beverages, such as Gatorade. We created a nebulizer using small tubing and sprayed the sample into the base of a Bunsen burner. Adjacent to the flame was a photodiode with a filter specific for the emission of the sodium D-line. After making a calibration curve, students could detect the amount of sodium in Gatorade to within 10% of the value on the label. The system costs less than $500 and can be assembled by students and used in an analytical chemistry laboratory course. (Contains 1 table and 4 figures.)