Sports drink

A sports drink is a functional beverage that is optimized for use with exercise. It is used for water supply during exercise, as well as an energy source during endurance performance.

It consists of a mixture of water, carbohydrates ( usually about 30 to 80 grams per liter), minerals, and often other additives such as vitamins and trace elements. Fruit juices and flavorings are used to flavor formation. Some beverages also contain stimulating substances such as taurine or caffeine ( energy drinks ). Are available ready-mixed drinks and powder, which is mixed with water. The suitability of some of these drinks for sports, especially those high in sugar and caffeine additive is controversial.

Fruit juice beverages and soft drinks are not suitable as sports drink: The high sugar content is increased, the residence time in the stomach and thus delays the absorption of water via the small intestine. In addition, the inclusion of such drinks can even provide short-term dehydration, as the hypertonic solution in the small intestine must be diluted first before it can be absorbed. The German Olympic Sports Confederation, however, recommends a sufficient drink to sports Apfelsaftschorle of equal parts of apple juice and sodium- rich and still mineral water. Other home-made drinks you can mix with various sugars glucose, fructose, sucrose, maltose or carbohydrate mixtures and sodium, or you can take whey as a base for the sugar and stock cubes for the sodium.

If sports drinks are to be used in competition, it is advisable to advance to compare the subjective compatibility of different products together.

However Isotonic drinks are only one aspect. Depending on the type and duration of physical exertion sports drink sometimes has to meet very different objectives. A supply of carbohydrates may be useful. From the load duration also depends on what minerals should be supplied with the sports drink. With a short exposure is the supply of sodium in the foreground, while a longer exposure as the additional supply of potassium may be useful.