Information From Your Health Care Provider |
Potassium is the predominant positively charged electrolyte in body cells. The flow of potassium and sodium in and out of the cells helps maintain the normal functioning of the heart, brain, kidneys, and skeletal muscles. It promotes a regular heartbeat, muscle contractions, and nerve transmissions. A potassium-enriched diet may be recommended for a patient with low serum (blood) potassium levels. Low levels of potassium seldom result from dietary deficiency because many foods contain potassium. Instead, the low level is usually due to illness, injury, or trauma or from certain drugs such as some diuretics and steroids.
| Foods High in Potassium Cereals | Amount of Serving | Potassium (mg) |
|---|---|---|
| Cereals Kellogg's All Bran Nabisco 100% Bran Bran Flakes Shredded Wheat |
1/2 cup 1/2 cup 1 cup 1 cup |
532 354 251 155 |
| Fruit Orange juice Dried apricots Cantaloupe Prunes Banana Grapefruit juice (canned) Tomato juice Avocado Peaches, dried Raisins |
1 cup 1/4 cup 1/4 medium 1/4 cup 1 small 1 cup 1 cup 1/2 4 medium halves 3 tablespoons |
479 454 412 353 338 360 552 510 330 225 |
| Cooked Beans Pinto beans Kidney beans Lentils Black beans Canned beans |
1/2 cup 1/2 cup 1/2 cup 1/2 cup 1/2 cup |
531 452 374 309 332 |
| Vegetables Baked potato Baked winter squash Baked sweet potato Beet greens Chard (large leaves) Peas (cooked) Spinach (fresh) Lima beans (canned or frozen) |
1 medium 1 cup 3/4 cup 1/2 cup 1/2 cup 1/2 cup 1/2 cup 1/2 cup |
593 590 528 417 563 296 440 473 |
| Other Canned tomato sauce Blackstrap molasses Sardines (canned in oil) Chocolate unsweetened/bitter) |
1/2 cup 2 tablespoons 3 ounces 1 ounce |
459 1218 459 249 |
According to the FDA's (Food and Drug Administration's) food labeling guidelines, the listing of the potassium content on food products is voluntary, rather than mandatory. Therefore, even if potassium isn't shown on the label, it can still be a component.