Potassium Goal crazy hard even with right food/labelling

gregc50
gregc50 Posts: 47 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Seems like to reach your potassium goal you have to only eat potassium rich food.
Avg RDV is 4700mg, since I'm doing the low calorie thing I only have to reach 3500.
Picking all food around potassium I have

- raw spinach one cup (167mg potassium)
- red kidney beans 100g (257mg)
- walnuts 37.5g (162mg)
- cottage cheese 1/2 cup (105mg)

- pork 8oz (500mg)
- sweet potatoe large (1348mg)
- portobello mushroom (364mg)
- red leaf kale (447mg)

thats 1500 calories and I reach 3351 mg, still 149mg short. Guess I can snack on dried apricot.

How on earth does any meet the goal without cherry picking only food high in potassium which gets very boring fast.

It seems to me the researchers that came up with 4700mg have no clue, they just guessed that a higher value is better for you.
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Replies

  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
    Recommended intake for potassium is 3400 for an adult male, not 4700: https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Potassium-HealthProfessional/

    Has your doctor told you that you have a potassium deficiency? I would check with your doctor before getting too worried about your potassium intake.

    If your doctor says you need more potassium, this chart may help: https://health.gov/dietaryguidelines/2015/guidelines/appendix-10/.
  • gregc50
    gregc50 Posts: 47 Member
    I am not worried about my potassium, I'm just trying to reach my daily values for fun/challenge and seems that you have to go through extraordinary effort to meet potassium recommendations.
  • MikePTY
    MikePTY Posts: 3,814 Member
    apullum wrote: »
    Recommended intake for potassium is 3400 for an adult male, not 4700: https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Potassium-HealthProfessional/

    Has your doctor told you that you have a potassium deficiency? I would check with your doctor before getting too worried about your potassium intake.

    If your doctor says you need more potassium, this chart may help: https://health.gov/dietaryguidelines/2015/guidelines/appendix-10/.

    The RDI is being changed on labeling. Not sure if it is in effect yet or not, but it will be 4,700 for adult RDI. https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2016/05/27/2016-11867/food-labeling-revision-of-the-nutrition-and-supplement-facts-labels

    As far as the OP's question, it is correct that hitting the potassium goal is hard. Less than 2% of Americans get 4,700 daily potassium. I think getting a good potassium intake is important, but I wouldn't jump through crazy hoops to try to get to 4,700.
  • zeejane4
    zeejane4 Posts: 230 Member
    edited April 2019
    I hit just over 4000mg yesterday on a 1,700ish calorie intake, before exercise was factored in. I wasn't trying to focus on potassium rich foods, it's just where my number hit from what I wanted to eat. I can list out what I ate, if you're interested.

    But Op, why is your calorie intake so low? 1,500 for a guy seems quite low, unless you're already thin/short?
  • gregc50
    gregc50 Posts: 47 Member
    zeejane4 wrote: »
    I hit just over 4000mg yesterday on a 1,700ish calorie intake, before exercise was factored in. I wasn't trying to focus on potassium rich foods, it's just where my number hit from what I wanted to eat. I can list out what I ate, if you're interested.

    But Op, why is your calorie intake so low? 1,500 for a guy seems quite low, unless you're already thin/short?

    I would certainly like to see how you hit 4g without trying.

    When I add in exercise its 1700 calories/day, probably an aggressive 800 deficiency, lasted a week so far.
  • zeejane4
    zeejane4 Posts: 230 Member
    edited April 2019
    gregcault wrote: »
    zeejane4 wrote: »
    I hit just over 4000mg yesterday on a 1,700ish calorie intake, before exercise was factored in. I wasn't trying to focus on potassium rich foods, it's just where my number hit from what I wanted to eat. I can list out what I ate, if you're interested.

    But Op, why is your calorie intake so low? 1,500 for a guy seems quite low, unless you're already thin/short?

    I would certainly like to see how you hit 4g without trying.

    When I add in exercise its 1700 calories/day, probably an aggressive 800 deficiency, lasted a week so far.

    Calorie intake 1,698/-125ish calories for brisk 2 mile walk
    Potassium 4123mg
    I'm a 40 yr old female, who's in maintenance (133.2lbs)

    Before 10am
    -cup of coffee with half&half (1tbsp)

    10am-4pm
    -cup of coffee with half&half (2tbsp)
    -green smoothie: frozen kale, frozen berries, flavored Triple 0 Greek yogurt, avocado
    -thin cut ribeye steak with sauteed mushrooms and onions, (sauteed in olive oil), and A-1 sauce; cottage cheese
    -large dinner salad: spinach, rotisserie chicken, crumbled hard boiled egg, black and green olives, tomato, diced onion, red bell pepper, broccoli, mild pepper rings, herb feta cheese and ranch dressing

    4pm-bedtime
    -pistachios and 1 square dark chocolate (78%)
    -4 pieces of sugar free gum
    -cup of coffee with half&half (1tbsp)

    eta: I track on another site and it won't let me copy/paste here in a clear way, to show you amounts of what I ate/micros breakdown. But, this will give you an idea. Things like coffee, mushrooms etc add up the potassium quick!
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 33,816 Member
    Even the MFP database numbers, which I know tend to understate, have me at over 3500 most days, so I frankly don't worry about it. Some of the items from yesterday, without duplicating yours, and ignoring really small contributors:

    1C Coffee 116mg (x 2)
    3/4C skim milk 298mg (x 2)
    30g oatmeal 108mg
    100g mixed berries 71mg
    12g milled flax seed 82mg
    1T Blackstrap molasses 300mg
    10g Hemp hearts 111mg
    112g Greek yogurt 177mg
    635g cabbage 1079 mg
    137g winter squash 330mg





  • gregc50
    gregc50 Posts: 47 Member
    zeejane4 wrote: »
    gregcault wrote: »
    zeejane4 wrote: »
    I hit just over 4000mg yesterday on a 1,700ish calorie intake
    Yeah I typed all that in guessing amounts and looks right. Having a green smoothie is not my thing but I am switching to more salads which helps.
  • gregc50
    gregc50 Posts: 47 Member
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    Even the MFP database numbers, which I know tend to understate, have me at over 3500 most days, so I frankly don't worry about it. Some of the items from yesterday, without duplicating yours, and ignoring really small contributors:

    1C Coffee 116mg (x 2)
    3/4C skim milk 298mg (x 2)
    30g oatmeal 108mg
    100g mixed berries 71mg
    12g milled flax seed 82mg
    1T Blackstrap molasses 300mg
    10g Hemp hearts 111mg
    112g Greek yogurt 177mg
    635g cabbage 1079 mg
    137g winter squash 330mg

    I guess the only thing on that list I would have normally is yogurt/coffee. I guess its all about changing what I eat to be more healthy, which I am doing gradually in order to feel full while meeting my goals.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 33,816 Member
    gregcault wrote: »
    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    Even the MFP database numbers, which I know tend to understate, have me at over 3500 most days, so I frankly don't worry about it. Some of the items from yesterday, without duplicating yours, and ignoring really small contributors:

    1C Coffee 116mg (x 2)
    3/4C skim milk 298mg (x 2)
    30g oatmeal 108mg
    100g mixed berries 71mg
    12g milled flax seed 82mg
    1T Blackstrap molasses 300mg
    10g Hemp hearts 111mg
    112g Greek yogurt 177mg
    635g cabbage 1079 mg
    137g winter squash 330mg

    I guess the only thing on that list I would have normally is yogurt/coffee. I guess its all about changing what I eat to be more healthy, which I am doing gradually in order to feel full while meeting my goals.

    That sounds like a perfect plan! :)

    I'm completely unwilling to eat foods I don't enjoy, just to get good nutrition. Life is too short! ;) Fortunately, there are lots of nutritious foods I do enjoy.

    In case it helps in some way with your thought process, everything on my list (plus some helpful walnuts) was breakfast (mixed together, except for the coffee/skim which were in a separate cup), other than the cabbage & winter squash which were part of dinner. The cabbage may sound like a lot (it was about half a head), but (a) volume is one of the things I find satiating, and (2) it was cut in 1/2" slices and roasted to crispness on the outside, which reduces the perceived volume quite a bit .

    I'm a big fan of gradually remodeling eating, to improve nutrition while still being happy/satisfied so I endorse your approach!
  • gregc50
    gregc50 Posts: 47 Member
    lemurcat2 wrote: »
    Here's a day where I got over 5000 mg in about 1400 cal

    Seems the common theme I am missing the dubious tasting smoothies and root vegetables (other than potatoes which I switched to sweet tatties).

    Still I got 3200mg today so I'm happy.

  • zeejane4
    zeejane4 Posts: 230 Member
    edited April 2019
    gregcault wrote: »
    lemurcat2 wrote: »
    Here's a day where I got over 5000 mg in about 1400 cal

    Seems the common theme I am missing the dubious tasting smoothies and root vegetables (other than potatoes which I switched to sweet tatties).

    Still I got 3200mg today so I'm happy.

    Green smoothies can taste really good, depending on what you put in them, and a half of an avocado in one makes it really creamy, like a shake :) I always add a serving of Dannon Triple 0 Greek yogurt to it, for the protein and flavor- my favorite is the orange cream https://www.oikosyogurt.com/greek-yogurt-protein/triple-zero/orange-cream/
  • sharondesfor935
    sharondesfor935 Posts: 89 Member
    @gregcault
    The dubious smoothies can grow on you 😆. Using frozen kale and spinach in them rather than fresh seems to reduce the green flavor, and because the greens are blanched before freezing, you're actually getting greater volume. I also throw frozen or canned sweet potato or butternut squash into mine (not a huge fan of bananas, but smoothies need something squishy to make them not "just juice"), and flavor everything with a ton of lime juice and Splenda. That's now my normal afternoon snack, and it tides me over so I'm not starving while I make dinner. It's all about what you use to flavor them!
  • ejbronte
    ejbronte Posts: 867 Member
    A couple of cents tossed in from me:

    For what it's worth, I average about 1400 mg of potassium a day, and when I'm tested, my potassium levels are good - this is on a daily diet of anywhere from 1200 - 1500 calories a day, depending on activity level (I'm 5'0", female and sedentary 8 hours a day).

    I am a little obsessive-compulsive about tracking my potassium, but my main focus is keeping it in balance against my sodium intake, since sodium is something I have to be careful about. So, let's say recommended potassium is 4700 and sodium is 1500; the ratio is about 3.1; for me, this is what I'm interested in. I want to keep the balance between the sodium and the potassium more or less at, say, between 3 and 4 (I know I'm phrasing it clumsily; have pity, I failed math...):

    I eat a banana or an orange every morning, and coffee is a morning necessity for me. My little home-made oat-based muffins/pancakes/tortillas/whatevers average about 170 mg of potassium and almost no salt. So this morning, for example, I started the day with about 700 mg of potassium already, which, for me, is about half my quota. For you, taller and probably MUCH more active, adding a second banana or other fruit would probably push breakfast over 1000 mg, which is a nice jump toward your quota. I find it's easier than I thought to accumulate mgs of potassium.

    At the end of the day now, my eating for the day done, and cuddle-time with cats almost upon me, I got myself 1457 mg of potassium balanced against a little less than 400 mg of sodium. That's a balance of 3.6, which is not bad, for me.

  • Spadesheart
    Spadesheart Posts: 479 Member
    edited April 2019
    I'm just gonna put this here, and I don't fully endorse it as apparently having too much potassium is dangerous and getting potassium this way is too easy.

    Artificial salt is pure potassium.

    I use half salt for my daily salt intake. Half salt is half table salt and half potassium. Just using that to get your daily teaspoon of salt adds 1300 mg of potassium. The difference in flavour is negligible.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
    gregcault wrote: »
    lemurcat2 wrote: »
    Here's a day where I got over 5000 mg in about 1400 cal

    Seems the common theme I am missing the dubious tasting smoothies and root vegetables (other than potatoes which I switched to sweet tatties).

    Still I got 3200mg today so I'm happy.

    Potatoes are a great source of potassium.

    I usually have veg omelets with greek yogurt (or avocado) for breakfast and still get potassium, but am mostly posting to defend my smoothie concoctions, which are delicious and super filling. Most smoothies are IMO too sweet and lack veg and sufficient fat.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
    sharondesfor935 wrote: »
    @gregcault
    The dubious smoothies can grow on you 😆. Using frozen kale and spinach in them rather than fresh seems to reduce the green flavor, and because the greens are blanched before freezing, you're actually getting greater volume. I also throw frozen or canned sweet potato or butternut squash into mine (not a huge fan of bananas, but smoothies need something squishy to make them not "just juice"), and flavor everything with a ton of lime juice and Splenda. That's now my normal afternoon snack, and it tides me over so I'm not starving while I make dinner. It's all about what you use to flavor them!

    I don't like sweet potato in a smoothie, but if I don't have avocado, will usually use some roasted (or frozen) winter squash. I like the texture those (or the avocado or some mango on occasion) provide. I like the occasional banana, but I don't like them in smoothies at all.

    My smoothies aren't that sweet, just enough, IMO.
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 10,076 Member
    Spadesheart wrote: »
    I'm just gonna put this here, and I don't fully endorse it as apparently having too much potassium is dangerous and getting potassium this way is too easy.

    Artificial salt is pure potassium.

    I use half salt for my daily salt intake. Half salt is half table salt and half potassium. Just using that to get your daily teaspoon of salt adds 1300 mg of potassium. The difference in flavour is negligible.

    Not sure what product you're referring to when you talk about artificial salt, but if it were pure potassium -- well, it wouldn't be pure potassium anymore by the time you exposed it to air for a few seconds, because it would oxidize. And if you somehow managed to move it from a vacuum into your mouth before it could oxidize in the air, it would react with the water in the saliva in your mouth and literally burn you. Not just a sensation of burning, mind you, but actual flames.

    If it were pure potassium, why would they call it artificial salt? Potassium isn't a salt. It's an element. I can't imagine that it would taste remotely like salt before it started burning your taste buds. Potassium chloride is a salt. But it's only a little more than half potassium.

  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
    ejbronte wrote: »
    A couple of cents tossed in from me:

    For what it's worth, I average about 1400 mg of potassium a day, and when I'm tested, my potassium levels are good - this is on a daily diet of anywhere from 1200 - 1500 calories a day, depending on activity level (I'm 5'0", female and sedentary 8 hours a day).

    I am a little obsessive-compulsive about tracking my potassium, but my main focus is keeping it in balance against my sodium intake, since sodium is something I have to be careful about. So, let's say recommended potassium is 4700 and sodium is 1500; the ratio is about 3.1; for me, this is what I'm interested in. I want to keep the balance between the sodium and the potassium more or less at, say, between 3 and 4 (I know I'm phrasing it clumsily; have pity, I failed math...):

    I eat a banana or an orange every morning, and coffee is a morning necessity for me. My little home-made oat-based muffins/pancakes/tortillas/whatevers average about 170 mg of potassium and almost no salt. So this morning, for example, I started the day with about 700 mg of potassium already, which, for me, is about half my quota. For you, taller and probably MUCH more active, adding a second banana or other fruit would probably push breakfast over 1000 mg, which is a nice jump toward your quota. I find it's easier than I thought to accumulate mgs of potassium.

    At the end of the day now, my eating for the day done, and cuddle-time with cats almost upon me, I got myself 1457 mg of potassium balanced against a little less than 400 mg of sodium. That's a balance of 3.6, which is not bad, for me.

    This makes sense. I don't get that much sodium compared to the average American diet in that I don't really eat a lot of packaged foods, I almost never eat fast food, most (not all) of my food is homemade, and if getting a canned option I usually opt for no sodium added just because I like controlling saltiness. And I never add salt at the table.

    On the other hand, I love some foods like olives and cottage cheese and pickles and smoked salmon that tend to be higher sodium, I add salt (not a huge amount, but a bit) when cooking and will not stop absent some health reason, and I go out to a nice/interesting restaurant once or twice a week and some of those are I dunno how we are supposed to describe them these days, but I'll say ethnic type places that are likely higher sodium (including a nice tapas place, Ethiopian place, Mexican, Indian, Chinese, Persian, sushi, so on). And I'll probably get stuck in a lunch meeting or other work lunch thing 1-2x a week and buy a salad or soup, also likely kind of high sodium.

    So I aim for something like 1-2x my sodium with potassium, and from my Cron numbers more often than not I'm closer to 2x, but I'm not too concerned about it given I've never had a BP issue.

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