Time to flag up “detox” drinks?

Dr. Floyd’s letter with reference to "detox" drinks and hyperkalemia
raises an interesting point (1). Nyirenda et al specifically mention that
hyperkalemia from dietary intake is uncommon except in the presence of
renal disease (2). The author (1) raises concern about several “sports”
and “detox” drinks having potassium levels over 80 mg/100 ml as well as
“one with a heart stopping boast of over 200 mg/100 ml”. Orange juice
contains 190 mg/100 ml
(http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EUY/is_43_6/ai_66807855/).
Pineapple juice has high levels of potassium as well. The recommended
daily allowance for potassium is 3500 mg
(http://www.lenntech.com/recommended-daily-intake.htm ). Therefore, it
would be hard to become hyperkalemic by drinking “detox drinks”,
especially for those with normal kidney function.

References

1. Floyd CN. Time to flag up "detox" drinks? BMJ 2009;339:b4824

2. Nyirenda MJ, Tang JI, Padfield PL, Seckl JR. Hyperkalaemia. BMJ
2009;339:b4114.

Competing interests:
None declared