Potassium is an essential mineral that is found naturally in most foods. Ninety-eight percent of potassium is found in intracellular fluid. Among its other functions, potassium, along with sodium and chloride (electrolytes), is an essential component of muscle contractions. Sufficient levels of potassium in the diet are thought to protect against high blood pressure.

Sources

Incorporate a daily potassium-rich diet including fruits, vegetables, whole grain breads and cereal, nuts, and beans. Specifically, instead of white bread and flour products, opt for whole wheat, oatmeal and dark breads. Fruits with sufficient quantities of potassium include avocados, bananas, raisins, prunes and watermelons. Eat more potatoes as they lead vegetables in potassium content, with one containing approximately 780 mg. Carrots, broccoli, celery and tomatoes are other good sources of potassium. For animal protein, choose fish. Three ounces of fish contain roughly 500 mg. Other viable options are hamburger, lamb, pork, and chicken as potassium sources.

Preparation

Steam vegetables instead of boiling since potassium has the propensity to leach into the water. Ten to 15 percent of potassium is lost in boiling, compared to 3 to 6 percent in steaming. Other preparation options include stir-frying vegetables and including them in soups.

Intake and Imbalance

Recommended daily intake for the average individual is 3,500 milligrams. Potassium imbalances in the body are usually attributed to losses, such as in sweating, as opposed to insufficient intake. This is because a well-rounded diet is typically replete with potassium. However, improper levels of this mineral in the body can have significant physical consequences including muscle cramping and fatigue, shallow breathing, nausea, vomiting and possible death due to ventricular fibrillation.

Source:

"Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition"; Nancy Clark; 2003

"Sports and Fitness Nutrition"; Robert Wildman and Barry Miller; 2004

"Principles of Anatomy and Physiology"; Gerard Tortora and Bryan Derrickson; 2009