Facts on Potassium

For CKD (Chronic Kidney Diseases) patients, one of the many factors in determining how well the balance of chemicals, electrolytes, and nutrients appear inside the body is through Potassium. For people on dialysis, their Nephrologists sometimes recommend to them to get a monthly laboratory results for this. The Nephrologist will then identify whether the patient is of high or having a low potassium intake. Anyway the normal Potassium level a person is supposed to have is 3.5-5.0 mEq/L. Beyond or below this level is of already something.

What is the main function of Potassium in our body? Potassium is a chemical, a positive electrolyte inside our cell which functions to maintain the water balance in our body. Common symptoms of potassium deficiency, which is very obvious, are having dry mouth, thirst, weakness, fatigue and muscle cramps. And since the heart is a muscle, it is one of the many muscle-organ that is highly affected if having too much or too low potassium intake.

For people with a normal kidney function and experiencing hyperkalemia and/or hypokalemia (hypo-low, hyper-high), can be corrected by a doctor or even by self-medicating. Supplementation is only the key factor. I have here some tips on how to treat symptoms of low potassium (for people with CKD and normal kidney functions). 

1. Get the daily recommended daily potassium intake. I think every physician would recommend this first tip first. First things first, as they would say. Doctors would normally advice to take at least 2000 to 3000mg of potassium daily.
2. Eat foods high in potassium. What are these kinds of foods? Main sources of potassium are from milk, fruits and green leafy vegetables. Bananas potatoes are also very rich in potassium. Here's one trick i got from my mother and also advised by my doctor (that is if you're having trouble in lowering your potassium level and/or  into dialysis): Soak the potatoes in a warm water for about 30 minutes before cooking it. In that case, you removed the excess potassium found in the potato! You can have an instant french fries if you like without having guilty thoughts.
3. Only self-medicate if the medicines you take is approved by your physicians! Some over-the-counter-supplements needs a doctor's prescription or proper dosage before taking it. Extra awareness is needed.
4. Follow everything what the doctor would tell you to do. 
5. Some people on dialysis use salt substitutes like potassium chloride to lower their sodium intake but unknowingly increased their  potassium level. If you're on dialysis i strongly disagree on having potassium chloride as a substitute. I would still suggest the name of the game, which is moderation. But if you still insist on having it, try to ask your doctor about it.