A Banana a Day Keeps the Tingles Away

            I recently started a pill that can cause low potassium as a side- effect, so I was told that if my fingers or toes began to tingle to eat a banana.  This has made me wonder what potassium really does in the body, and well what some other nutrients do in our body that we are told to eat but don’t commonly hear about like calcium and protein.

            Potassium is one of the human bodies’ main electrolytes.  Most of the potassium in our body is eliminated through sweat and the urine.  This is why after long work outs; you should always drink a fluid such as orange juice that will replace the lost electrolytes.  Potassium is used in the body to build proteins and muscles, break down and use carbohydrates, maintain normal body growth, and control the electrical activity of the heart and acid-base balance.  Some deathly less important purposes are keeping acne, some allergies, fatigue, and kidney stones away.

Having a severely low level of potassium can result in weak muscle, abnormal heart rhythms, and slight rises in blood pressure.  Too much potassium in the blood can also cause abnormal and irregular heart rhythms.

The good news is that potassium can be found in many foods to help regulate the levels in your body.  Meats, such as red meats, chicken, and fish contain potassium along with soy products and veggie burgers.  Milk, yogurt, and nuts are a source of potassium.  Fruits, such as cantaloupe, citrus fruits, bananas, prunes, kiwi, and apricots, contain excellent sources of potassium.  Even many vegetables contain large amount of potassium.  However, caffeinated drinks and sodium tend to remove potassium from the body.

            Research and studies are being done on the use of potassium as a therapy for elderly hypertension patients.  Many of the elderly do not respond to blood pressure lowering medication, studies are underway to use potassium chloride as an alternative to other hypertension medications.

            Studies have been done that show a relationship between potassium intake and osteoporosis.  It is believed that a higher intake of potassium by women leads to a decreased chance of developing osteoporosis later in life.  People who get a lot of potassium in their diet also seem to have a lower chance of stroke; however this trend does not seem to stand true for potassium supplements.

            I don’t exactly understand still why my fingers tingle when my potassium gets low since I never found it as a side effect anywhere.  However, I did learn that drinking coffee in the morning when I eat my daily banana would explain why every day I still have tingling fingers by lunchtime.  I will probably have to change my morning routine.

I got my information from here, here, here, and here.

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