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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