Potassium |
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capsules/tablets/liquid |
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Potassium is vital to life and to the functioning of every cell. Essential for proper functioning of the heart muscle, insulin release, proper fluid balance, and nerve function. Critical for optimum energy, muscle contraction, athletic performance, and a wide range of other functions. Supports the concentration and activities of Magnesium, a major heart nutrient. Today, Potassium deficiency is not uncommon because high salt intake, eating refined foods, taking diuretics, and drinking large quantities of water flush out vital Potassium from the body. Getting enough is more important than limiting salt intake for regulating blood pressure. Rates of heart disease and cancer are far lower in cultures where the food supply is more natural and richer in Potassium. So intimate is its cardiac relationship that Potassium readings can be used with a great degree of accuracy to predict someone's risk for heart rhythm abnormalities.1 Study reveals that Potassium taken daily can cut in half the risk of death from a stroke.2 Too much emphasis is given to sodium in the sodium-potassium balance to treat high blood pressure. Scientific literature shows that Potassium may be more important in both treatment and prevention.3 Restricting salt for anyone with heart failure or tissue swelling is appropriate, but the rest of us can satisfy our salty tooth within reasonable limits with little risk to hypertension. Ensuring a high intake of Potassium, many population studies show, is more effective at preventing the onset of hypertension, the "silent killer."4 In addition, more than thirty controlled studies attest to the success of Potassium as a blood pressure control agent.5 Fatigue or weakness may be the most common indicators of a need for more Potassium. Low-calorie dieters, older people, and heavy-duty exercisers are especially prone to a Potassium-related loss of energy. An inadequate amount of Potassium and Magnesium may contribute to the onset of chronic fatigue syndrome. Leg cramps, particularly the ones that awaken you at night, may also stem from low levels Potassium (as well as Magnesium and Calcium). Causes of hypokalemia (the name given to low blood Potassium) include diuretics ("water pills"), usually prescribed for high blood pressure or heart failure and anti-hypertension drugs, ACE inhibitors and beta-blockers--all impair Potassium levels.
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