Potassium
Potassium and magnesium are the first concerns in energy and heart conditions like high BP.
I see five problems in getting enough potassium:
• Quantifying daily requirements
• Food sources to use.
• Supplement sources and doses
• Cofactors like magnesium or sodium
• How to monitor
Daily Requirements
The RDA for an average healthy male is 4.7grams, that’s 4700 mg.
For females it’s to be around 3.5
For a case of sodium retention edema it could higher until resolved, closer to 6 grams to help remove sodium because these two are in balance.
Balance means they both work together and correct the extreme of other as it’s opposite.
Compare that to the average advice of just eat a banana daily that has about 450 mg.
Even doctors say that, which shows they have no nutritional training and have a complete failure to quantify.
Compare these daily requirements to the limit put on capsules: .99 according to the idea that’s it’s dangerous to take potassium, which I will not address, I will just stick to general facts.
To get just 2 grams as a supplement to potassium in the diet. you need 20 a day.
Foods
To get enough potassium people need to eat a variety of foods every day.
You must look up potassium values of foods to find foods you tolerate and meet multiple nutritional needs for optimum value.
Add up the numbers and servings. There has been almost complete failure to quantify.
Supplements
Some people don’t tolerate any supplement forms.
Some people find one good form.
It seems supplements are harder to assimilate so need to be taken in smaller doses more often.
Some of the reactions leading to potassium having a reputation has being dangerous may be due to this.
Cofactors
The main cofactor of potassium is magnesium.
In cases of edema we generally avoid sodium.
People without edema often benefit by balancing sodium in this trio.
There may be other cofactors in individual cases.
All nutrients are indirect cofactors at least as the body is only as strong as it’s weakest links as a system.
Monitoring
Forget the lab tests. Potassium levels are too variable and to track like that.
Potassium is not retained, burned quickly, and needed in large amounts so you need to know daily and hourly what is going on.
You can read signs that you are low but then it is too late.
Design enough or a little more than enough into the diet, which is difficult to do in the first place-- if you add up the numbers you will see.
You’re not going to get excess like sodium because is not retained.
Be proactive, not reactive, not having to monitor so much and put attention on all other nutrients you need for a complete solution.
What I experienced is that potassium deficiency and sodium imbalances can develop quickly and I lost track of what I knew with so many distractions and stresses. Generally knowing things is not enough, managing details is crucial.
Everyone has individual needs and tolerances and therefore a different diet and set of supplements. I can’t guess what anyone needs.
As a health coach I can take the time to evaluate and design a complete nutritional solution
Potassium is essential for heart health, blood pressure, and energy in general.
Blood pressure is not a mystery and the heart health industry admits they don’t understand root causes. Even though they track potassium, they cannot operationalize and quantify a solution.