Potassium... How are you getting enough?

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jessicanorgaard
jessicanorgaard Posts: 4 Member
in Food and Nutrition
So this app is telling me I am constantly way below the recommended potassium levels. Is anyone hitting these targets? If so, how?
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Replies

  • monty619
    monty619 Posts: 1,308 Member
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    potatoes, bananas, oats
  • wizzybeth
    wizzybeth Posts: 3,578 Member
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    Also tomatoes. Meats. Even coffee has about 100+ MG per cup. That's why I log coffee even though I drink it black. :)
    Note that potassium may not be included in the nutrition database...so while the app doesn't register it, that doesn't mean you are not getting it. Do a Google search for potassium rich foods and then look up the levels yourself and add the full nutrition value to the database.
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
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    Many of the entries in the data base do not include potassium amounts because the US FDA does not require that info on packages.
    Forget about the potassium.
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,950 Member
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    I use potassium citrate.

    Would be funny if I forgot the potassium like someone so helpfully suggested. It seems to have been what resolved my near constant testicular cramps.

    Electros can be a B.
  • lau444
    lau444 Posts: 120 Member
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    I used to think it was impossible to hit my potassium goals everyday but since I've incorporated more fruits and veggies in my diet (through green smoothies), I actually go over 3500mg most days. Plant-based foods, chicken and dairy seem to have the highest amounts.
  • jessicanorgaard
    jessicanorgaard Posts: 4 Member
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    Thanks all. I eat tons of veggies. I bet it is the quality of the items in the database not listing potassium like RodaRose mentioned.

    Luckily as a female I am not concerned about testicular cramps. More heart health.
  • ana3067
    ana3067 Posts: 5,623 Member
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    I don't track it. Only time I care about potassium is if I have a high sodium day (like tonight) so I'll add some potassium salt to stuff. Like I added a bunch to my taco meat tonight because I knew it'd be high sodium from using packaged taco seasoning.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    You should try to track whole foods like veggies using the USDA entries that MFP entered (they have no asterisk), as opposed to the user entered foods. They are generally more accurate, have lots of different measurement options (like the extremely convenient 100 grams), and include potassium. Because I use those entries, I was able to see that my potassium is generally well above the MFP goal.

    Usually the trick to finding them is plural plus "raw" (assuming you weigh raw, which is ideal anyway): "carrots, raw" or "broccoli, raw" or "potatoes-red, with skin, raw" are examples of the format.
  • Justygirl77
    Justygirl77 Posts: 385 Member
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    Folks don't always do the data entry correctly....perhaps it's not being included in the data input?
  • Camo_xxx
    Camo_xxx Posts: 1,082 Member
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    Brussel sprouts are rich in potassium
  • cricketcamp
    cricketcamp Posts: 1 Member
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    Raisins!
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
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    lemurcat12 wrote: »
    You should try to track whole foods like veggies using the USDA entries that MFP entered (they have no asterisk), as opposed to the user entered foods. They are generally more accurate, have lots of different measurement options (like the extremely convenient 100 grams), and include potassium. Because I use those entries, I was able to see that my potassium is generally well above the MFP goal.

    Usually the trick to finding them is plural plus "raw" (assuming you weigh raw, which is ideal anyway): "carrots, raw" or "broccoli, raw" or "potatoes-red, with skin, raw" are examples of the format.

    This is smart
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    RodaRose wrote: »
    Many of the entries in the data base do not include potassium amounts because the US FDA does not require that info on packages.
    Forget about the potassium.

    This.
  • Michael190lbs
    Michael190lbs Posts: 1,510 Member
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    Banana's are killing my Carbs/sugar!!
  • Sweepypie
    Sweepypie Posts: 161 Member
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    The doctor told me to eat at least one banana a day. If not I would be on medication for it.
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
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    RodaRose wrote: »
    Many of the entries in the data base do not include potassium amounts because the US FDA does not require that info on packages.
    Forget about the potassium.

    This

    Justygirl77 wrote: »
    Folks don't always do the data entry correctly....perhaps it's not being included in the data input?

    And this

    I don't think I've EVER hit mfp's potassium recommendation
  • lesnl
    lesnl Posts: 1
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    Yams!
  • cindytw
    cindytw Posts: 1,027 Member
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    Potassium can be a serious deficiency. I do track it and what I do is to look for entries that show a potassium listing. They all don't, but most foods have some. I find 0 to be a red flag that it isn't correct. I have had a deficiency so I pay attention to this. Biggest sources that people can do are V8 low sodium, swiss chard, and lima beans. Bananas are a myth, they have no more than a lot of other foods.
  • SoLongAndThanksForAllTheFish
    SoLongAndThanksForAllTheFish Posts: 831 Member
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    You almost never need to track potassium. It is in most all common foods, and very few nutritional information panels ever list potassium. Its actually dangerous to get too much from suppliments, much more dangerous than sodium (which btw now with recent studies, we are unsure if sodium ever was anywhere near as dangerous as its made out to be even for heart conditions).
  • barbecuesauce
    barbecuesauce Posts: 1,771 Member
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    jessicanorgaard wrote: »
    Thanks all. I eat tons of veggies. I bet it is the quality of the items in the database not listing potassium like RodaRose mentioned.

    Luckily as a female I am not concerned about testicular cramps. More heart health.

    You probably already are hitting it or coming close, especially if those veggies are frozen/canned/dried. A cup of chickpeas has 1750 mg--but most prepackaged entries don't have that information because it hasn't been on the label.

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