Potassium is best known for its blood pressure countering effects, but did you know that it is also essential for protein and muscle building, controlling the heart’s activities, maintaining the body’s delicate acid/base balance as well as controlling the breaking down and use of carbohydrates.
Deficiency in potassium (also known as hypokalemia) causes the muscle to weaken, an increase in blood pressure, heart failure, abnormal heart rhythm known medically as cardiac arrhythmia, irritability, depression and other mood problems.
Doctors have recommended that potassium deficiency be treated by foods rather than supplements so as to avoid a case of too much potassium in the system (a condition known as hyperkalemia).
Potassium Deficiency Home Remedies
So here is a list of potassium rich foods, considering we need 4.7gm (4700mg) of potassium daily;
1. Bananas
Everyone knows that bananas are potassium rich, with 1 banana providing 422mg of the nutrient. Make a banana smoothie or banana enriched bread as some of fun ways to add banana into your diet. Over ripe bananas can also be blended, frozen and added to ice-creams, and how about healthy banana pancakes for brunch?
2. Sweet potatoes
This should be a favorite for many as it contains a healthy amount of potassium (639mg of it per sweet potato) while having fewer calories than potatoes. There are countless ways of cooking it including baking, grilling, stuffing it, or even mashing it.
Compared to potatoes, they taste better and that’s why you should try sweet potato crackers next time you want a healthy snack. You could also, try it baked as a healthier alternative to fries.
There are healthy soups and salads that use sweet potatoes like the sweet potato chili which is such a treat for a family dinner.