Foods with High in Potassium: Is it really essential to our body?

Foods with high in potassium are essential to your body. Consumption of it to regulate the nerves and muscles in our body is the key for a better and fit body. So better grab some of the foods with potassium!

Foods with high potassium perform a critical role in the nerve transmissions of our body. This process involves the transferring of potassium in and out of the cell. Regulate the transporting of potassium in our cells makes the muscles and nerves do their primary job.

One of the roles of potassium in our body is to make it as storage of carbohydrates that can be used as energy later on. Our muscles need potassium to maintain the balance of electrolytes and acid-base. Balance of nutrients in our body is important and stands as the key to be healthy.

Complete nutrients in our body will help us get the results of having stronger bones and joints. It is possible with the calcium in our bones. Potassium is responsible for retaining the calcium in our body.

If you have a deficiency in potassium, you may have hypokalemia. Having low potassium levels could lead to high blood pressure. Another thing, if you are under medications like diuretics, you need to increase your potassium intake.

Potassium deficiency

How can you say if you have potassium deficiency? Some of the symptoms that you can experience are dizziness, fatigue, muscle cramps, palpitations or high blood pressure, and feel bloated most of the time.

Fatigue means that even you have enough sleep, you are feeling exhausted. This can mean other causes like stress or diet. Sleep deprivation is also another thing to consider. But if you do not seem to be relaxed and seem to feel down, you need to change your diet or add more foods with high potassium.

Foods with high in potassium can address your feeling of muscle cramps. An adequate amount of potassium can help you relax your muscles. Deficient in potassium can give you spasm and muscle ache during the day or at the end of the day mostly.

Another symptom of potassium deficiency is dizziness. Dizziness, at this point, is the feeling of going up and down all the time. You can also feel a significant drop or slowing down of your heartbeat, which can make you faint. If you have no other health issues and you suddenly feel these changes, you need to consult your doctor.

Low potassium levels cause high blood pressure and palpitations. With low potassium levels, your blood vessels wall can become constricted that may cause hypertension. It could make your heart palpitate. Then you should check the levels of your sodium compared to your potassium level. The two should be balanced to make your heart muscle pump blood harder.

Common symptom if you have a digestive problem is bloating. If your bloated in some way, this can be a caused by excess salt and low potassium. Therefore, having a balanced level of sodium and potassium is really important to prevent health problems.

Potassium Beyond Limitations

Increase level of potassium is not always healthy. Too much consumption of food rich in potassium can lead to hyperkalemia. One of the diseases that can attack you is “Addison’s.” This disease is a condition in which your body does not make enough of certain hormones or chemical produced by different glands and organs that our body needs.

How will you know if you have a high level of potassium? Make an appointment to your doctor to run some test in your blood for potassium level. Indicate if you are taking some medications and supplements. If you are advised to avoid foods that are high in potassium, you have an above-average level of potassium.

So to keep a reasonable range of your potassium levels, here are some of the suggestions that might help you.

Make a low-potassium diet

Foods that are high in potassium can trigger underlying health issues. So, you need to choose foods that are at a moderate level of potassium or those with low content. Follow the recommended daily serving of potassium. If you are not fully aware, ask some advice from your dieticians to balance your diet.

Choose certain salt substitutes

Since foods with high potassium are not suggested for those with kidney disease, make sure your salt substitution has less potassium. Most salts are high in potassium so avoid them.

Stay away from herbal remedies and supplements

Another thing that you need to stay away from is the food supplements and herbal remedies. These alternatives have potassium levels that can harm our kidneys. Check the contents of these supplements and herbal medications before consumption.

Potassium binders

Potassium binders can be used to lessen the amount of potassium in our blood. It comes in powdered form and can be mixed with a small amount of water. You can enjoy it with food. The process of how potassium binders work is through stools by flushing out the excess amount of potassium in our body. If you want to include binders in your diet, follow the instructions correctly. Also, you need to consult your doctor on this matter beforehand.

Diuretics

On the other hand, you can use diuretics or water pills. Water pills can get rid of extra potassium. It regulates the water build up in your kidney to create more urine. So, potassium can be removed in the urine in your body.

Studying the potassium content

Each food has different potassium content. For instance, some fruits have low, moderate, and high potassium content.

Fruits with high potassium content are banana, papaya, prune juice, raisin, mango, orange, cantaloupe and pear.  Fruits like peach, apple, pineapple, strawberries and watermelon have medium potassium content. Cranberries are known to have low potassium content.

Other than fruits, we can get potassium from vegetables as well. High-potassium vegetables are potatoes, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, mushrooms, zucchinis, squash, avocados, and broccoli. You can have moderate levels of potassium from corn, carrots, cauliflower, asparagus, peas, lettuce, green beans and cucumber.

How about foods with protein? Do they also contain potassium? Protein foods like pinto beans, soy milk, salmon, turkey, sunflower seeds, lean beef and peanut butter are also high in potassium content. Peanuts, almonds, cashews and egg are protein foods with the medium potassium content.

Which Food is High in Potassium

Which food is high in potassium? Since potassium has many benefits to our health, here are some of the top picks that can give the necessary nutrients your body needs. What we have mentioned earlier are some of the foods that have potassium. The daily recommended value of potassium that we can consume is 4,700 mg.

Sweet Potato

In sweet potato, you can have about 542 mg of potassium. It has vitamin A, which is good for the eyes and vitamin C for your skin. Also, you can get enough fiber that can make your gut filled. So other than potassium, you can also get extra vitamins.

White Potato

For white potato, you can get 941 mg of potassium.  If you are on a diet, you can have white potatoes in your meal since it has low calories, fat and sodium content. It also has vitamin C and magnesium. When cooked right and accurately, you will get enough resistant starch which is right for your gut.

Beets

Another food with high amounts of potassium is beets. Foods that are high in potassium like beets can be used in various recipes of salads and soups. The number of potassium that we can get from beets is 518 mg.

According to a study in 2017, the juice made from beets can boost the performance of athletes before training and workout. The only side effect after taking beet juice is the reddish color of urine, which is just average.

Tomato

Other than beet juice, you can have tomato juice. You can get 728 mg of potassium in each cup of tomato juice. Common nutrients that we can get from tomato is lycopene. It is the disease-fighting plant pigment that gives certain fruits and vegetables a red hue. When consuming tomato juice, you should consider its low-sugar content. Also, check the labels for nutrition facts content.

Watermelon

Eating watermelon will make you refresh while getting some 641 mg of potassium. Other than potassium, watermelon can also be a source of lycopene and vitamins. It also contains little amount of calories.

Butternut Squash

For a cup of butternut squash, it is packed with 582 mg of potassium. You can also get vitamins A and C with magnesium, folate and calcium. Make sure to include squash to your favorite recipes.

Chard or Swiss chard

Other than calcium, iron, and vitamins, chard can be enjoyed with 961 mg of potassium. The advantage of this food is its green color which gives the nutrients our body needs.

Avocado

Fruits like avocado are packed with 507 mg of potassium for every 3.5 ounces. Other than healthy fats and fiber, avocado can be enjoyed with its many recipes. So you don’t need to limit yourself with one or two recipes for a healthy meal. Feel the potassium nutrient in recipes like toast, guacamole and salad toppings.

Apricots

Dried apricots, on the other hand, can give us 430 mg of potassium for every 6-piece serving. You will need to reconsider sweetened dried apricots. Then you can make some recipes like homemade granola bars and trail mixes. This is another twist for your potassium-filled recipes.

Beans

You can choose from black and white beans. But both seeds can supply enough amounts of potassium.

Black beans can provide 739 mg of potassium. Other than fiber and protein, potassium is one of the nutrients that we can get from black beans. You can also get some calcium, magnesium and folate.

While white beans, a single cup has 1,189 mg of potassium. It also has 20 grams of protein and 13 grams of fiber.

Soybeans

Whole soybeans are one of the right sources of protein. But in a single cup of soybean, you can have 676 mg of potassium. You can add them in your salad and serve it as a side dish. You can enjoy the whole soybean in your salad or side dish.

The art of consumption of foods with high potassium

Indeed, potassium is significant to our body to have a healthy heart and strong muscles. Like other nutrients, we need to consume an adequate amount of foods with high potassium. But our intake should be in moderation, following the daily recommended serving for a promising result.

But before taking foods with high potassium, run some test to know the levels of potassium in your body. Excess or deficiency of potassium can significantly affect your wellness.

Just to remind you that prevention at a young age and eating nutritious foods over time lead us to be fit and healthy. We can avoid serious health problems and learning some ways to improve your eating lifestyle.

Many have great desires to be physically fit and healthy. To be in good shape while indulging mindlessly with junk foods can harm your health eventually. So eat lots of healthy food that are rich in vitamins and minerals.