Are You Eating Enough Potassium?
You may already know that incorporating more potassium into your diet can help regulate your blood pressure.But, did you know that potassium also works with magnesium to improve your sleep! If you ever wake in the middle of the night with muscle cramps this power combo can be super beneficial for you.
Why Potassium?
So long story short potassium is considered an electrolyte. It mixes and mingles with sodium to control nerve impulse transmissions, help heart function and lastly to aid in muscle contractions. With that said, it is essential to maintain and healthy ratio of potassium to sodium intake. The recommended dose is to consume 5 times more potassium than sodium. Sadly because American’s consume so much highly-processed foods that ratio is throw off and most end up taking in double the amount of sodium to potassium.
What You Can Do at Home
The next time you visit the doctor and they tell you have high blood pressure don’t fear! It may just be that you aren’t taking in enough potassium or that you have an improper ratio of potassium to sodium. Also, be on the lookout for seer potassium deficiency signs:
- fatigue
- muscle weakness
- cramps
- abdominal pain
- extreme cases will have muscular paralysis and abnormal heart rhythms.
- Avocado (874 mg per cup)
- Broccoli (505 mg per cup)
- Brussel Sprouts (494 mg per cup)
- Celery (344 mg per cup)
- Crimini Mushrooms (635 mg for every 5 ounces)
- Romaine Lettuce (324 mg for every 2 cups)
- Spinach (838 mg per cup)
- Swiss Chard (960 mg per 1 cup)
The Good News
Dr. Marina Rose has helped men and women with their sleep issues and other challenging, chronic health conditions in and around the city of San Jose, CA.
Dr. Marina Rose, DC has a Chiropractic and Functional Nutrition practice in Los Altos, CA. She uses an investigative approach to help people find the root cause of their sleep issues.