The human body consists of 60% water. When you exercise, you start to perspire. Your body loses fluid. This fluid loss should be kept within limits, given that a 2% loss of fluid already has negative effects on your sports performance, i.e. muscle cramps, stomach and intestinal complaints and fatigue. You need to replenish this fluid loss by drinking. Logical. You can drink water or opt for a sports drink. A sports drink provides carbohydrates in addition to replenishing the required fluid. And it provides energy for your body to exercise.
The difference between the three types of sports drinks lies in the osmolarity. This indicates the concentration of particles (such as carbohydrates and minerals) in the sports drink, also known as the particle density. High osmolarity means that there are many particles present in the sports drink and this has an effect on the speed at which the sports drink is absorbed. A sports drink with low osmolarity is absorbed by your body more quickly than a sports drink with high osmolarity.
A hypertonic drink, such as AA Drink High Energy, has high osmolarity. We speak of hypertonicity when the sports drink contains more than 8 grammes of carbohydrates per 100 ml.
An isotonic sports drink has about the same concentration of particles (osmolarity) as the body fluid. An isotonic sports drink, such as Iso-lemon or Isotoon, contains an average of 4-8 grammes of carbohydrates per 100 ml. Because the osmolarity is approximately equal to the body fluid, an isotonic sports drink is absorbed by the body quickly and easily.
A hypotonic sports drink, such as AA Drink Zero, has lower osmolarity than a person’s own body fluid. On average, a hypotonic sports drink contains less than 4 grammes of carbohydrates per 100 ml. The advantage of this is that a hypotonic sports drink is absorbed by your body very quickly. The advantage of this is that your body can quickly be supplied with the required amount of fluid, carbohydrates and possibly minerals. That is why it is an ideal thirst quencher that you can drink at any time of the day.
