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- Cholesterol Levels: What You Need to Know
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- How to Lower Cholesterol
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- Rare Diseases
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Potassium
Summary
Potassium is a mineral that your body needs to work properly. It is a type of electrolyte. It helps your nerves to function and muscles to contract. It helps your heartbeat stay regular. It also helps move nutrients into cells and waste products out of cells. A diet rich in potassium helps to offset some of sodium’s harmful effects on blood pressure.
Many people get all the potassium they need from what they eat and drink. Sources of potassium in the diet include:
- Leafy greens, such as spinach and collards
- Fruit from vines, such as grapes and blackberries
- Root vegetables, such as carrots and potatoes
- Citrus fruits, such as oranges and grapefruit
Your kidneys help to keep the right amount of potassium in your body. If you have chronic kidney disease, your kidneys may not remove extra potassium from the blood. Some medicines also can raise your potassium level. You may need a special diet to lower the amount of potassium that you eat.
NIH Office of Dietary Supplements
Related Issues
- Can Diuretics Decrease Your Potassium Level? Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research
- Potassium Harvard School of Public Health
- Potassium in Your CKD Diet National Kidney Foundation
Clinical Trials
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Hypokalemia National Institutes of Health
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Potassium National Institutes of Health
Find an Expert
- Find a Nutrition Expert Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
- Food and Drug Administration Food and Drug Administration
- Food and Nutrition Information Center Food and Nutrition Information Center
- National Institutes of Health, Office of Dietary Supplements National Institutes of Health, Office of Dietary Supplements
Encyclopedia
- High potassium level Medical Encyclopedia
Specifics
- How Potassium Can Help Control High Blood Pressure American Heart Association
- Hyperkalemia (High Potassium) Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research
- Low Potassium (Hypokalemia) Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research
Patient Handouts
- Hypokalemic periodic paralysis Medical Encyclopedia
- Low potassium level Medical Encyclopedia
- Potassium in diet Medical Encyclopedia
- Potassium test Medical Encyclopedia
- Potassium urine test Medical Encyclopedia
Start Here
- Potassium National Institutes of Health, Office of Dietary Supplements
- What is Potassium? Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
Diagnosis and Tests
- Potassium Blood Test National Library of Medicine