Isotonic drink: what the label says
The isotonic is a powder you dissolve in water. Here is what the label says and what to watch for when reading the numbers.
- Author:
- Honey Bee Power
- Updated:
- 1 min read
What isotonic means
An isotonic drink has roughly the same concentration of dissolved substances as body fluids. Fluid guidance for sport mentions drinks with carbohydrate and electrolytes as an option when carbohydrate is taken along with fluid (Sawka et al., 2007).
Numbers from the label
Per 100 g of powder, both flavours have 90 g of carbohydrate, of which 5.5 g are sugars. A 15 g serving (lemon) has 13.5 g of carbohydrate and 55 kcal. So a large part of the carbohydrate is not sugar; read the full ingredient list on the pack, which we are confirming with the producer.
Minerals
- Lemon per 100 g: magnesium 34.1 mg, potassium 45.5 mg, sodium 7.6 mg
- Orange per 100 g: magnesium 27.1 mg, potassium 31.3 mg, sodium 14.6 mg
Sodium and electrolytes
The lemon has only 1.14 mg of sodium in a 15 g serving. Sweat contains sodium in amounts measured in hundreds of milligrams per litre (Sawka et al., 2007), so we do not present the isotonic as electrolyte replacement. Most of the powder is carbohydrate.
Packs and preparation
It comes in a 500 g pack and a 15 g sachet. Prepare it according to the directions on the pack.
This is general information, not medical or nutritional advice.