Potassium is a mineral which helps your heart, kidneys and nerves function at their best. This mineral is an electrolyte and helps maintain optimal fluid volume and electrolyte balance in your body.
Potassium can be found in a variety of foods including legumes, fish, dairy, fruits and vegetable. If you do not get enough of this mineral in your diet you are at risk of kidney stones, muscle weakness and high blood pressure.
Finding the right balance of potassium is needed providing your body with too much potassium is also not good for your health. This is rare as excess potassium is normally excreted easily by your kidneys. Inability to excrete this excess potassium can be seen in interactions of certain supplements and medications, excessive usage of potassium salts as well as chronic kidney disease.
The adequate amount of potassium needed each day for women aged 19 years and over is 2800mg while for men it is 3800mg. This can be achieved easily in a day when your diet is well balanced. Here is an example:
Breakfast
2 slices toasted whole grain sourdough bread topped with 1/4 (50g) of an avocado and 1/2 cup of ricotta cheese.
Lunch
1 cup of whole grain pasta with 1 cup of chickpeas with 1/2 cup of cooked spinach and 1/2 cup of capsicum. Topped with 40g of shredded cheddar cheese.
Dinner
100g of grilled tuna steak with 1 sweet potato, 1 cup of cooked peas, corn and carrots and 1 cup of broccoli.
Dessert
200g of yoghurt with 1 cup of berries.
Take home message: By including a balanced variety of whole foods in your day you should easily meet your potassium needs. Aim to make keep sometimes foods and drinks just that, a sometimes occasion and you will help your body meet your potassium needs.
