Min menu

Pages

6 Signs That You Need Emergency Potassium! You should never ignore the 4th!

6 Signs That You Need Emergency Potassium! You should never ignore the 4th!

6 Signs That You Need Emergency Potassium

Potassium is a mineral essential to the functioning of our body, as it ensures vital functions. A deficiency in this mineral electrolyte can therefore impact our health and have serious consequences. Here is how to recognize potassium deficiency and how to remedy it.

Potassium plays an important role in our body. Its principal functions are in particular the transmission of the nerve impulses and ensure the muscular contraction even that of the heart. It also helps to maintain the functions of the kidneys and contributes to the metabolism of carbohydrates.

This mineral is therefore essential for the proper functioning of the body and a deficit or its decrease can affect health.

Hypokalemia: causes:

Hypokalemia refers to a reduction in the amount of potassium in the blood. This may be due to a number of causes, including: a significant loss of potassium via urine or vomiting and diarrhea. But hypokalaemia can also be caused by insufficient intake of potassium.

Recall that the daily needs for potassium vary according to age and gender. In general, a 2 g daily intake is recommended. It is not always easy to recognize a deficiency in potassium, because the symptoms can be confused with the signs of other health problems. However, there are signs that this disorder can be detected.

Here are 6 signs that you are suffering from potassium deficiency:

1 - Constipation:

A potassium deficiency can affect the various functions of the body, including the digestive system. In case of hypokalaemia, the patient may be prone to digestive disorders such as constipation, but also bloating or nausea and abdominal pain. Let us remember that potassium has an important action in the stomach because it makes it possible to maintain the acidity of the gastric secretions, which are essential to the proper functioning of the digestive tract.

2 - Muscle weakness:

Potassium plays an important role in the activation of muscle cells. That said, it is responsible for muscle contraction of the various muscles of the body. In case of a deficiency, it is normal to feel weakness or muscle pain.

3 - Heart palpitations:

Lack of potassium also affects cardiac function. Indeed, potassium is essential for muscle contraction (heart muscle). A deficit in this mineral will therefore slow down the functions of the heart, which has trouble pumping blood, and can cause heart rhythm disturbances, which affect the intensity of contractions and their regularity and frequency. As a result, palpitations may occur.

4 - Fatigue:

You feel tired, even after a good night's sleep and a rest day? You may be suffering from potassium deficiency.

This mineral is essential to the functioning of every cell in the body. Its lack causes a state of general and unexplained fatigue.

5 - Numbness and tingling:

Potassium plays an important role in maintaining the functions of the nervous system. A deficiency of this mineral can affect it and cause disorders such as a feeling of numbness or even tingling especially on the feet and hands.

6 - High blood pressure:

This mineral helps to dilate the blood vessels, but when it is present in smaller amounts in the body, the latter can shrink. It should be remembered that undiluted blood vessels are linked to a higher blood pressure because the blood exerts strong pressure on their walls.

How to prevent the lack of potassium?

To avoid potassium deficiency, it is important to cover its daily needs in this mineral. No need to take dietary supplements, except in cases of severe deficiency and this must be done under medical supervision. There are a variety of foods that are very high in potassium and that consume regularly increase potassium reserves!
Here is a small list of the foods richest in potassium:
  • Coffee
  • Sugar-free chocolate
  • Dried apricot
  • Dried fig
  • Parsley
  • Prune
  • Almonds
  • bananas
  • Avocado
  • spinach
  • broccoli
  • Legumes (lentils, dried beans ...)