Wherefore art thou, potassium?
jtcedinburgh
Posts: 117 Member
As I'm watching the diet, I'm also using the MFP app to see what vitamins and nutrients I'm getting. Most are fine, but one I consistently seem to lack is potassium. I know I can get it from bananas, but only a small amount (I'd have to eat a whole bunch, and though I don't mind one, I couldn't face that many), spinach (which I am trying to eat raw as an extra filling alongside my lunch) but beyond that I'm stuck.
Apart from red wine (which seems to rank quite highly in the potassium stakes, which is nice to know but only really helpful for me at weekends) is there anything that can give me a potassium boost without excessive quantities?
I;'m sure there must be.... how do you folks manage?
Apart from red wine (which seems to rank quite highly in the potassium stakes, which is nice to know but only really helpful for me at weekends) is there anything that can give me a potassium boost without excessive quantities?
I;'m sure there must be.... how do you folks manage?
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Replies
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You're probably getting a lot more than you expect, since most food contains some potassium, but the FDA doesn't require it on labels because there is no RDA for potassium - the FDA considers potassium to be a nutrient that the average diet contains enough of that there's no need to track it.5
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rankinsect wrote: »You're probably getting a lot more than you expect, since most food contains some potassium, but the FDA doesn't require it on labels because there is no RDA for potassium - the FDA considers potassium to be a nutrient that the average diet contains enough of that there's no need to track it.
Oh wow! I was with the OP trying to get more potassium! I had no idea. Well, that makes me feel better!
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Potatoes and avocados have a good amount of potassium. More than a banana, in fact (depending on your serving size, of course). Brussels sprouts, dark leafy greens, beans, pumpkin, artichokes, cantaloupes, tomatoes, oranges. If your diet is rich in fruit and veggies, you probably don't have to worry about it!2
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I take a magnesium/potassium supplement because I suffer from terrible restless leg syndrome and the prescription medication for it makes me sick.0
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I eat lots of potatoes. But as i understand it, the potassium is in the skin - so don't peel them!0
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rankinsect wrote: »You're probably getting a lot more than you expect, since most food contains some potassium, but the FDA doesn't require it on labels because there is no RDA for potassium - the FDA considers potassium to be a nutrient that the average diet contains enough of that there's no need to track it.
This for sure.
but try potatoes and I believe tomatoes are good ones0 -
Mushrooms. I'm adding mushrooms to my breakfast fajita today in a deliberate effort to get more potassium from my food. Asparagus has potassium too. Mushrooms and asparagus, in the serving size I use, have like 10 calories each. Each have hundreds of mg of potassium in that portion.0
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Kiwi has alot of potassium. More than a banana, according to the package sitting in my kitchen.1
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Look on the Internet for good potassium sources. Concentrated tomato (sauce, paste, dried), whole oranges, a prune or 3, so many good sources. Eating up to 9 servings of fruit or vegetable per day is great. Just watch calories and sugars.0
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I have low potassium issues because of a medication I take. One of my go to's is dried apricots. There is about 1,000mg of potassium in 130g.0
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a lot of foods don't list potassium on the labels but still have some, so potassium is the roughest nutrient to accurately track. if you're concerned about it, you're going to need to do some research and then edit a lot of foods in the database to add the potassium info. milk has a decent amount of potassium, but a yogurt i was eating didn't list it, so i called the company that made the yogurt but they had no idea how much potassium was in the yogurt. that has happened to me repeatedly.
my husband's on a duiretic, and he mostly counts on potatoes to replace potassium - they have more than orange juice or bananas, both of which he also eats/drinks, and they are more often recommended by his doctors (not one of whom was aware that potatoes were a good source of potassium).0 -
Potatoes are a great source of potassium, as are sweet potatoes. You might need to watch carbs if you are counting. Most doctors prefer to prescribe a supplement when folks are on a potassium wasting diuretic.0
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Beans are also a good source of potassium. Especially white and kidney beans. Just make sure you aren't getting too much potassium, as that can be life threatening.0
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itsbasschick wrote: »a lot of foods don't list potassium on the labels but still have some, so potassium is the roughest nutrient to accurately track. if you're concerned about it, you're going to need to do some research and then edit a lot of foods in the database to add the potassium info. milk has a decent amount of potassium, but a yogurt i was eating didn't list it, so i called the company that made the yogurt but they had no idea how much potassium was in the yogurt. that has happened to me repeatedly.
I eat plain Greek yogurt almost every day. By random coincidence, one brand I bought actually had the potassium listed (Whole Foods house brand organic Greek yogurt.) I base my estimates on potassium from plain Greek yogurt for that fat % on that label.
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Here we go - 250 mg for 6oz. Not bad.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/food/update_nutrition_facts/249270069?date=2016-05-06&show_controls=true0 -
dates have a lot of potassium... and are good fuel for workouts as well
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Less than 2% of Americans achieve even the recommended minimum adequate intake of potassium, due primarily to inadequate plant food intake.
Source here
the recommended minimum adequate intake is 4,700 a day
informational video with additional info on potassium - all studies for this video are cited as well
edited to add: sources of potassium1 -
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I take a magnesium/potassium supplement because I suffer from terrible restless leg syndrome and the prescription medication for it makes me sick.
I'm with you on the RLS. I take a magnesium supplement, and like my dad, I use salt substitute with this high blood pressure and the xtra potassium in it. I have a limited list of foods that I like so I would not be getting the desired amount from my foods to keep these legs a-going. My mom took a prescrip potassium. My grand daughter watches me, she has RLS and she licks a little salt sub a day.0 -
itsbasschick wrote: »
I take Potassium Chloride prescribed by my primary care provider to counteract my hydrochlorothiazide.
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Beans are also a good source of potassium. Especially white and kidney beans. Just make sure you aren't getting too much potassium, as that can be life threatening.Beans are also a good source of potassium. Especially white and kidney beans. Just make sure you aren't getting too much potassium, as that can be life threatening.
Thats something a lot of people dont know, about too much potassium. One comment said we are getting more than we realize since a lot of foods dont even list it. So that's bringing me down a bit, cause basically I had forgotten about potassium being dangerous in too high doses. Thanks!0 -
per the Mayo Clinic:
The most common cause of genuinely high potassium (hyperkalemia) is related to your kidneys, such as:
Acute kidney failure
Chronic kidney disease
Other causes of hyperkalemia include:
Addison's disease (adrenal failure)
Alcoholism or heavy drug use that causes rhabdomyolysis, a breakdown of muscle fibers that results in the release of potassium into the bloodstream
Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors
Angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs)
Destruction of red blood cells due to severe injury or burns
Excessive use of potassium supplements
Type 1 diabetes
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Beans are also a good source of potassium. Especially white and kidney beans. Just make sure you aren't getting too much potassium, as that can be life threatening.
Really, the only people at much risk here are people who use potassium supplements. You're not likely to get too much potassium from your diet, even if you're eating a lot of potassium rich foods.HealthierRayne wrote: »Less than 2% of Americans achieve even the recommended minimum adequate intake of potassium, due primarily to inadequate plant food intake.
Source here
the recommended minimum adequate intake is 4,700 a day
informational video with additional info on potassium - all studies for this video are cited as well
edited to add: sources of potassium
Also this ^^^^0 -
Coconut water is good. I feel if you eat a good diet and are not getting charlie horses at night you are probably getting what you need0
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cwolfman13 wrote: »Just make sure you aren't getting too much potassium, as that can be life threatening.
Really, the only people at much risk here are people who use potassium supplements. You're not likely to get too much potassium from your diet, even if you're eating a lot of potassium rich foods.
Very unlikely, and potassium supplement pills are a joke and near-useless. Check the levels - it's because any real amount will kill somebody with a certain rare heart condition so they're gimped.
The real supplement is NuSalt, which is sold as a salt replacement and is 100% potassium.
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HealthierRayne wrote: »Less than 2% of Americans achieve even the recommended minimum adequate intake of potassium, due primarily to inadequate plant food intake.
Source here
the recommended minimum adequate intake is 4,700 a day
informational video with additional info on potassium - all studies for this video are cited as well
edited to add: sources of potassium
That's an AI number (adequate intake), which is the least reliable of the various types of daily allowances. There is not enough scientific data to establish an EAR / RDA, which require more evidence about the dose/response.
The 4700 mg is also not the amount you need to avoid hypokalemia. The rationale for the 4700 mg is primarily because potassium, in about 10% of the population, helps to lower blood pressure by offsetting the effect of sodium to raise blood pressure. Sodium tends to increase blood volume - potassium decreases it, by drawing fluid into cells instead.
Those with normal blood pressure, or those with high blood pressure that doesn't improve with sodium reduction, don't need that level of potassium. It's very, very hard to become hypokalemic because of bad diet - typically that is only seen in truly starving or sometimes anorexic patients. Your body is capable of regulating potassium levels quite well.0 -
I was on a medication that was making me slightly deficient once I greatly reduced milk and potatoes from my diet (rather get my carbs elsewhere as I'm diabetic). I took a supplement for a few weeks and started eating more avocados. You can alter the display on MFP to show potassium as one of the things you track like fat, carbs, etc. I've since gone off the offending medication and I'm no longer deficient. If you are worried you are lacking (it's pretty important nutrient) get blood work, otherwise as others have said, you are probably getting enough and just don't see it because of the lack of reporting.0
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feisty_bucket wrote: »The real supplement is NuSalt, which is sold as a salt replacement and is 100% potassium.
100% potassium chloride.
Pure potassium would be extremely dangerous.
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