What is Potassium?
In order for all of our cells, tissues, and organs to function properly, they require a sufficient amount of a mineral known as potassium. Along with calcium, chloride, magnesium, and sodium, potassium is also an electrolyte, meaning that it conducts electricity in the body. Electrolytes are extremely important when it comes to regulating fluid levels in the body, however, that’s not all potassium is good for.
Some of the most notable functions of this mineral include:
- Enhancing muscle control, as well as the health and growth of your cells
- Helping the muscles contract
- Aiding in the waste removal process
- Managing blood pressure levels and making sure the heart functions properly
- Maintaining the electrolyte balance in your cells
- Assisting the nervous system and promoting efficient cognitive function
Potassium is considered to be among the most soluble minerals, meaning that it easily gets lost in processing and cooking of foods. It also tends to get lost after alcohol, sugar, and coffee consumption. Diuretic drugs cause potassium losses as well.
Having too little potassium in your body is a condition known as hypokalemia, while having too much is called hyperkalemia. Maintaining normal potassium levels not only depends on your potassium intake, but the amount of magnesium and sodium in your blood as well.
If your diet consists of too much sodium, then you’ll need to make sure you eat more potassium. Nevertheless, if your diet is rich in fruits and vegetables, then you won’t really have to worry about potassium deficiency.
The risk of suffering from hyperkalemia steadily rises as you get older. This is due to your kidneys becoming less efficient, thus not being able to eliminate as much potassium as they did before.
Why the Body Needs Potassium
Your body simply isn’t able to function properly if it doesn’t have enough potassium. At least 100 mg of potassium is needed daily in order for it to support the key bodily processes.
Considering that it is not only an important mineral and electrolyte, but also the primary positive ion found in your body’s cells, it comes as no surprise that you can experience a lot of health benefits if you maintain healthy potassium levels. Here are some of the most notable health benefits that are associated with this mineral.
Bone Health
Potassium is able to actually neutralize certain acids found in the body, which are known for retaining calcium (a very important mineral best known for promoting bone health) and rendering it useless. However, thanks to this mineral, calcium becomes free once again and safely gets back to improving your bone health. Apart from this, potassium is also able to increase the mineral density in bones, thus prolonging their life and strengthening them.
Blood Pressure
Earlier we said that you’ll need to increase your potassium intake if you follow a diet that consists of too much sodium. This is because the mineral is responsible for reversing the harmful effects of sodium. People who eat too much salt generally have a huge risk of suffering from high blood pressure. However, when you consume a healthy amount of potassium, your blood pressure will actually get normalized.
This is one of the most important functions of potassium, considering that it will help lower the risk of hypertension and heart diseases.
Brain Function
Not only will your bones and heart benefit from potassium, but your brain will get to enjoy some great benefits as well. If your memory and learning abilities aren’t serving you great lately, then you might want to get your potassium levels checked.
Since this mineral maintains electrical conductivity, it greatly affects brain function. Apart from improving your memory and learning, potassium is also known for protecting you against epilepsy.
Muscular Strength
Potassium really displays its importance when it comes to muscular strength. Without this mineral, your muscle tissues simply wouldn’t grow properly. On top of that, the energy that gets released during metabolism wouldn’t be utilized properly, which would also make your muscular strength suffer.
When you don’t consume enough potassium, all of your muscles (include the cardiac muscles!) become prone to paralysis. When it comes to the health benefits of this mineral, providing metabolic energy and stimulating cell growth may just be the most important ones. Because potassium helps muscles contract and relax, it would be impossible to exercise and train your muscles without it.
Low Blood Sugar
Some of the most notable symptoms of low blood sugar include nervousness, headaches, trembling, weakness, and sweating. Whenever you don’t consume sufficient amounts of potassium, you’ll experience a drop in low blood sugar. This is the main reason why every diabetic patient should make sure to keep their potassium levels normal. When you stabilize your blood sugar levels, you won’t have to worry about unpredictable spikes and plunges in your insulin and glucose levels.
Anxiety
If you often have problems with stress and anxiety, then you might want to increase your potassium intake. This mineral helps you by regulating the stress hormones in your body, such as adrenaline and cortisol. Whenever you deal with stress and anxiety, your brain won’t get to function at an optimal level.
Nervous System
Thanks to potassium, your nerve reflexes responsible from transmitting messages from one body part to another work efficiently. This helps you remain feeling energetic despite performing various activities throughout the day.
Fluid Balance
Maintaining optimal fluid balance is extremely important. When you have proper fluid balance, your organ systems function better. If you ever got told to eat a banana (this fruit is an excellent source of potassium) after a workout or a heavy night of drinking, it was so that you restore optimal fluid balance and rehydrate.
Heart and Kidney Health
As long as you consume enough potassium, your heart and kidneys will be running smoothly. If your heart rhythm isn’t great, then you may be suffering from potassium deficiency. Apart from that, this mineral aids in waste removal through the process of excretion. However, remember to always consult a doctor before increasing your potassium intake, as a high dosage may actually be harmful. For example, when you raise your potassium levels, you will encourage your body to absorb way more calcium than needed, which may cause kidney problems instead of solving them.
Stroke
One of the most notable health benefits of potassium is that it allows more oxygen to reach your brain, thus ensuring that this organ functions properly. Not only will this help your brain work efficiently, but it will also reduce the risk of a stroke. When you consume enough potassium, your blood vessels will relax, thus improving your blood flow and decreasing the risk of a blood clot.
Health Risks Associated with Potassium Deficiency
Since potassium is quite an important mineral, it comes as no surprise that you can experience a number of health risks if you don’t consume enough of it. Potassium has a great role in making sure all of your muscles function properly, which is why a deficiency in this mineral can cause some very serious health problems, such as heart attack or heart arrhythmia.
Causes of Potassium Deficiency
There are a number of things that can cause low potassium levels. Some of the most notable causes of this condition include:
- Lack of the nutrient in the diet
- Severe Vomiting
- Chronic kidney disease
- Folic acid deficiency
- Diabetic ketoacidosis
- Excessive sweating
- Excessive alcohol use
- Use of diuretics
Signs of Potassium Deficiency
Potassium is a mineral that is found in every single cell of the human body, so when you don’t have enough of it in your system, you’re going to start feeling a lot of changes when it comes to your overall health. Here are some of the most notable signs of a potassium deficiency.
Muscle Weakness
We’ve previously mentioned how this mineral is responsible for the contraction and relaxation of muscles. In order for your muscles to contract, there needs to be a significant difference in the concentration of intracellular and extracellular potassium. When you’re suffering from a potassium deficiency, this concentration difference will decrease, making it extremely hard for your muscles to function properly. This will not only make you feel muscle weakness, but it may also cause spasms, cramps, and twitching.
Heart Palpitations
Electrical impulses are what make our hearts contract in a rhythmic and coordinated fashion. These electrical impulses are the result of a specialized conduction system, which can actually be disrupted if there is a small amount of potassium in your body.
One of the most notable signs of hypokalemia is heart palpitations. Basically, this means extra beats, a missed beat, or even the feeling that your heart is pounding too hard. If you experience heart palpitations, you should immediately visit a doctor, as these rhythm abnormalities are life-threatening.
Dizziness
If you’re suffering from hypokalemia, you’re in the risk of frequent dizziness and fainting. This is because a lack of potassium can make your kidneys lose their ability to concentrate urine, thus making you lose an excessive amount of water and making your blood pressure drop.
Muscle Stiffness
If you’re suffering from severe potassium deficiency, then the previously mentioned muscle weakness will turn into muscle stiffness, tenderness, and aching. When you have low potassium levels, your muscle cells get damaged, and some of their contents leak out as a result. This is a condition known as rhabdomyolysis.
Abdominal Pain and Bloating
Malfunctioning of the involuntary muscles of the intestines and the stomach is not uncommon for a person suffering from potassium deficiency. This can cause abdominal pain, bloating, and constipation.
Frequent Urination
Because hypokalemia has such a strong effect on your kidneys, you may end up losing a significant amount of water through frequent urination. Beware, as this can also lead to dehydration and extreme thirst.
Treatments for Potassium Deficiency
There isn’t much of a science behind treating potassium deficiency. The easiest way to do this is to alter your diet and start eating more fresh, whole foods that contain a lot of potassium. You should also rehydrate as much as possible.
However, note that water won’t do the trick in most cases, as you’ll need a sports drink or any other type of beverage that contains a lot of electrolytes. If you’re experiencing serious symptoms, then your best bet is to visit a doctor, who’ll prescribe the adequate medication that will help you maintain healthy potassium levels in order to prevent serious consequences.
Recommended Potassium Intake
The recommended dietary allowance of potassium is 4,700 milligrams daily. Unfortunately, only 2% of people in the United States consume the right amount of potassium on a daily basis.
This especially represents a problem in the US, since most Americans follow a diet, which consists of too much salt. As we previously mentioned, if you’re in the habit of consuming a lot of sodium, then you will need to increase your potassium intake as well.
According to a survey conducted by the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, most Americans consume 2,640 milligrams of potassium a day. The World Health Organization notes that this is not only a problem in the States, as they believe most of the world’s population doesn’t consume as much of this mineral as they should.
A healthy potassium to sodium ratio should be 2:1. Considering that, a lot of people really overdo it when it comes to sodium consumption, it may get hard to consume twice the amount of potassium.
This is why you should not only work on increasing your potassium intake, but lowering your sodium intake as well.
Potassium Rich Foods
Potassium is found in numerous foods. Your best bet for increasing potassium intake is to eat more fruits and vegetables, as they are generally high in this mineral and low in sodium.
When you’re buying whole foods, make sure to buy them fresh, as a lot of potassium gets lost when foods are canned or processed. Although not so much is lost when frozen, fresh foods are still your best option.
Some of the best sources of potassium include:
- Avocados
- Spinach
- Dried Apricots
- Mushrooms
- Tomatoes
- Peas
- Sweet potatoes
- Coconut Water
- Kefir or Yogurt
- Broccoli
- Acorn squash
- Potatoes
- Bananas
- Raisins
- Apples
- Nuts
- Seeds
- Artichokes
- Beef
- Beets
- Blackberries
- Brussels sprouts
- Cantaloupe
- Carrots
- Semisweet Chocolate
- Clams
- Dates
- Pink Grapefruit
- Greens
- Lentils
- Milk with added Vitamin A and D
- Nectarine
- Okra
- Orange
- Prunes
- Pumpkin
- Soymilk
- Strawberries
- Turkey
- Fish that are rich in potassium include cod, flounder, sardines, and wild salmon.
- Herbs with notable potassium content are plantain, hops, sage, red clover, horsetail, skullcap, and nettle.
Do You Need a Potassium Supplement?
According to MedicineNet.com, only 2% of adults in the United States get the recommended dietary allowance of potassium. When you take the importance of this mineral into consideration, you’ll see why this is a huge issue. Anyone who eats a lot of processed foods and not enough whole foods is at risk of a potassium deficiency.
First of all, potassium supplements should never be taken by people who have kidney disease or are taking an ACE inhibitor. While other people can take supplements, they shouldn’t exceed 100 mg of potassium a day.
Although having too much of this mineral in your system is a rarity, you should never gamble and take too many supplements, as you might have a serious reaction.
It is a known fact that when you isolate certain nutrients and make them into supplements, they won’t be able to match the same health benefits as the nutrient consumed through a whole food.
Even though you can take these supplements if you wish, it’s much better to get your potassium from eating the foods that contain it. Taking a synthetic supplement that may leave you experiencing certain side effects doesn’t really sound that great compared to simply adjusting your diet a bit.
Always ask your doctor if you are concerned about potassium deficiency.
Final Thoughts
If you’ve never really paid too much attention to your potassium intake, you might want to start now. This is an extremely important mineral that the body needs in order to function properly. Along with a few other minerals, it is also an electrolyte, meaning that it conducts electricity in the body.
When it comes to the health benefits that you can experience from consuming potassium, some of the most notable include improved bone health, fluid balance, muscular strength, and brain function, as well as normalized blood pressure and blood sugar.
Taking potassium supplements is not really needed, as you can get your daily amount of this mineral simply by eating fresh, whole foods.
Some of the best sources of this mineral include bananas, avocados, potatoes, tomatoes, nuts, seeds, apples, broccoli, cod, wild salmon, and more.
However, if you’re looking to increase your potassium levels, then you should also cut down on or eliminate coffee, alcohol, and sugar from your diet.
