Nosalt- A potassium supplement?
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Spadesheart
Posts: 464 Member
So. I never paid attention to nutrition before I was dieting because the amount that I was eating definitely allowed for enough consumption of everything, but now that I am dieting and I have had to keep track of protein intake, I took a look at my vitamin and nutrient intake. I basically eat no potassium right now. Like 10% the suggested potassium in the last month. To a lesser extent, Vitamin A and Vitamin C as well.
Due to the excess protein, I have very little room to change the diet much now. I went to the pharmacy to see if I could get potassium in a supplement, but the vitamins are hot garbage; 80 mg of the 3500 mg we should be having.
I've read that nosalt, a salt substitute, is made primarily of potassium. I looked at the nutrition and it says 650 mg per 1/4 teaspoon.
Is there a reason for me to not make an Gatorade style beverage with nosalt, lemons and sucralose and drink that to fill my potassium needs?
Due to the excess protein, I have very little room to change the diet much now. I went to the pharmacy to see if I could get potassium in a supplement, but the vitamins are hot garbage; 80 mg of the 3500 mg we should be having.
I've read that nosalt, a salt substitute, is made primarily of potassium. I looked at the nutrition and it says 650 mg per 1/4 teaspoon.
Is there a reason for me to not make an Gatorade style beverage with nosalt, lemons and sucralose and drink that to fill my potassium needs?
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Replies
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Potassium is not required on labels in the US so many people will not enter it in the database entries. Double check several days of your diary to packages or usda published info. MFP isn't great for nutrient tracking unless you are carefully checking all the data in an entry before using it.
Taking singular supplements for most minerals is not advisable unless you have bloodwork showing you're deficient.5 -
Spadesheart wrote: »Is there a reason for me to not make an Gatorade style beverage with nosalt, lemons and sucralose and drink that to fill my potassium needs?
That's what cyclists do.
If we can't be bothered buying commercially made drinks and powders for our long rides, we make our own with NoSalt, maltodextrin and whatever flavourings we want.
But that's because we're exercising and need to keep our electrolytes in balance.
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Potassium supplements are limited by the FDA to 99mg per pill, which is why they are "hot garbage". I don't understand all the specifics, but it is generally considered better to get your potassium from food then supplementation.
A cup of cooked spinach has 40 calories and over 800 mg of potassium. There are other foods that are not high in calories but high is potassium.
Having a diet devoid of fruits and vegetables deprives you of other valuable nutrients as well. It would be good to add them.3 -
Potassium supplements are limited by the FDA to 99mg per pill, which is why they are "hot garbage". I don't understand all the specifics, but it is generally considered better to get your potassium from food then supplementation.
A cup of cooked spinach has 40 calories and over 800 mg of potassium. There are other foods that are not high in calories but high is potassium.
Having a diet devoid of fruits and vegetables deprives you of other valuable nutrients as well. It would be good to add them.
As the veg changes day to day, its hard to gauge them effectively for nutrients like potassium. I could drink spades-erade daily, so that's quite easy to gauge.0 -
I would never take a potassium supplement. One of my focuses is getting sufficient potassium from food (a higher level, one of my DASH things). You have to log whole foods to know, though.2
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Eat veggies and fruits and potassium will not be an issue you ever worry about0
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Potassium is not required on labels in the US so many people will not enter it in the database entries. Double check several days of your diary to packages or usda published info. MFP isn't great for nutrient tracking unless you are carefully checking all the data in an entry before using it.
Taking singular supplements for most minerals is not advisable unless you have bloodwork showing you're deficient.
Actually, this might be a smart precaution. My yearly physical is due, while dieting might be a good time to do it, and confirm any deficiency.1 -
Spadesheart wrote: »Is there a reason for me to not make an Gatorade style beverage with nosalt, lemons and sucralose and drink that to fill my potassium needs?
That's what cyclists do.
If we can't be bothered buying commercially made drinks and powders for our long rides, we make our own with NoSalt, maltodextrin and whatever flavourings we want.
But that's because we're exercising and need to keep our electrolytes in balance.
I work out ideally about 6 days a week right now, with one very heavy cardio day. Based on what I eat, I think from a food perspective, it's pretty cut and dry I'm not getting enough. I can't keep the same pace if I change up the diet more than I have; fitting in that amont of protein was already challenging.0 -
Spadesheart wrote: »Spadesheart wrote: »Is there a reason for me to not make an Gatorade style beverage with nosalt, lemons and sucralose and drink that to fill my potassium needs?
That's what cyclists do.
If we can't be bothered buying commercially made drinks and powders for our long rides, we make our own with NoSalt, maltodextrin and whatever flavourings we want.
But that's because we're exercising and need to keep our electrolytes in balance.
I work out ideally about 6 days a week right now, with one very heavy cardio day. Based on what I eat, I think from a food perspective, it's pretty cut and dry I'm not getting enough. I can't keep the same pace if I change up the diet more than I have; fitting in that amont of protein was already challenging.
This is one of the reasons it's not advised to undereat. It is difficult to give your body the basics it needs.1 -
Spadesheart wrote: »Spadesheart wrote: »Is there a reason for me to not make an Gatorade style beverage with nosalt, lemons and sucralose and drink that to fill my potassium needs?
That's what cyclists do.
If we can't be bothered buying commercially made drinks and powders for our long rides, we make our own with NoSalt, maltodextrin and whatever flavourings we want.
But that's because we're exercising and need to keep our electrolytes in balance.
I work out ideally about 6 days a week right now, with one very heavy cardio day. Based on what I eat, I think from a food perspective, it's pretty cut and dry I'm not getting enough. I can't keep the same pace if I change up the diet more than I have; fitting in that amont of protein was already challenging.
This is one of the reasons it's not advised to undereat. It is difficult to give your body the basics it needs.
I'm tempted to say I like to find ways to have my cake and eat it too, but it feels a bit too convenient of a joke.0 -
Potassium is really tricky. Here's some in-depth information from the Harvard Medical School on why it can be a very bad idea to supplement K without medical supervision:
https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/should-i-take-a-potassium-supplement1 -
I've used it just for the purpose - I try via diet, but it wasn't sufficient, and I didn't want to have to pay for pills. I can say that it was a little rough on my stomach, but it was worth it (though I'd definitely suggest keeping your levels monitored).0
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