Banana
Food · Fruit · Food, Typed Supps
A practical potassium source — tablets are capped far lower for safety.
Stage by stage
- Intake (Easily digestible): Naturally soft texture requires minimal digestive breakdown.
- Stomach (Fast-digesting carbohydrate): Its natural sugars and starch begin breaking down quickly.
- Small intestine (Potassium & sugar absorbed): Potassium and carbohydrate are absorbed relatively quickly, which is part of why it’s a common pre-exercise snack.
- Muscle & nerve cells (Electrolyte & energy use): Potassium supports muscle contraction and nerve signalling; absorbed sugar provides quick energy.
Timing
Commonly eaten before or during exercise for quick, easily digested energy.
Time to effect
- ~30–60 min: Sugar and potassium are absorbed relatively quickly.
Allergens
None of the fourteen major allergens. Derived from what this food is, not from a product label.
Eating patterns
Fits: Vegan, Vegetarian, Pescatarian, Halal, Kosher, Low-FODMAP, Gluten-free.
In season
All year in the northern hemisphere, All year in the southern.
Satiety
118 on the satiety index, where white bread is 100 — moderate. Measured by Holt et al. (1995).
Environmental footprint
0.9 kg CO2e and 115 litres of freshwater per kg, matched to "Bananas" in Poore & Nemecek (2018), Science 360.
Cost band
Cheap — roughly £2 per kg, as a band midpoint rather than a price.
Key nutrients
Nutrition per 100g
- Calories: 95.4
- Protein: 1.4g
- Carbohydrate: 19.9g
- of which sugars: 13.4g
- Fat: 0.2g
- of which saturated: 0g
- Fibre: 2.2g
- Sodium: 0mg
Food vs. supplement
Regulatory caps mean a potassium supplement pill delivers far less potassium than a banana does — food is genuinely the more practical source for this particular mineral.
Kitchen tip
A slightly green banana has more resistant starch and a slower sugar release than a fully ripe, spotted one.
Common myth
“Bananas are the best food source of potassium.” In reality: Foods like potatoes, white beans, and avocado actually contain more potassium per serving than a banana does.
Recipes that use it
More in Fruit
In the glossary
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