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Adequate potassium necessary for healthy human survival

Ron Walter discusses potassium and its importance.
MJT_RonWalter_TradingThoughts
Trading Thoughts by Ron Walter

Some years ago, food companies came out with reduced salt offerings in their soups.

After that, the first time I went to the super market I checked them. The salt content was reduced by 30 per cent BUT the potassium content was increased by a similar amount. Apparently, the food makers didn’t want to lose that taste consumers like.

I lost more trust in the food companies and didn’t think about it until health issues taught me the role of potassium in human body survival.

The body needs certain levels of potassium to stay healthy.  Potassium regulates our heart beat, plays a role in nerve signals and contracting of muscles and helps kidneys to function.

Without enough potassium, we get sick. With too much, we get sick.

A friend of mine once rushed to the ER after a collapse and was told he should be dead considering how high his potassium level had reached.

Recommended potassium intake ranges between 1,600 milligrams to 2,000. That’s 16 to 20 grams. Males need more than females, according to the literature.

Unlike salt, which we eat like candy, many people don’t get enough potassium. 

Potassium rich foods can abound in our diet.

Foods with plenty of potassium include beans, lentils, most root vegetables (ie, potatoes, turnips, beets), spinach, broccoli, bananas, cantaloupe, oranges, tomatoes, cashews, almonds, dairy products and dried fruits.

Foods low in potassium include apples, watermelon, grapes, peaches, mandarin oranges, pears, pineapple and a whole raft of berries — blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, plums, raspberries, and cranberries.

Eating out creates challenges. Yours Truly frequently consults nutrition tables of which foods on the menu are low or high in potassium. The secret for me is to eat smaller quantities of food and that has benefits for weight too.

For comparison, we’ll look at foods listed with high salt content in the last column.

Subway doesn’t list potassium on its nutrition guide. Health Canada is working on mandating potassium content for chain restaurant nutrition tables.

That order of small fries at McDonald’s has 400 milligrams of potassium. A big Mac has 350. Combined they give you about one-third of daily needs.

A regular hamburger contains 175 mg potassium. An order of chicken McNuggets has no potassium.

That breakfast bacon and egg McMuffin has 125 mg potassium. The sausage and egger has 225. Hot cakes have a mere 25 mg

Tim Horton’s also doesn't list the potassium content. In fact, finding the nutrition menu on Tim’s site is almost impossible. I had to find a third party site for information.

If the food chains want consumers to trust their menus they need to be more open about the nutrient contents of each dish.

One site I use for finding nutrition data is nutrition.self.com.

Potassium content of three ounce (100 gram) servings of some popular meats is: chicken breasts 322 mg, beef 325, turkey breast 212,
pork spare ribs 270, pork chops 380.

Someone asked if the kidney diet worked and was it worthwhile. It has been, Twenty-three months ago I was being prepared for kidney dialysis. Today while still in risky territory, my kidney function has improved by 50 per cent

Ron Walter can be reached at ronjoy@sasktel.net

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the position of this publication.  

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