Potassium deficiency while eating low carb is quite common. This often results in muscle spasms and leg and foot cramps. I found that my appetite decreased so much that I just was not eating enough foods and wanting to skip meals.  I am doing weight bearing resistant exercises and the muscles cells need the potassium. It is very important to get adequate potassium because the heart that keeps us alive is a contracting muscle.  We don’t want to cause damage to the heart or irregular heartbeats.

I was looking for a potassium supplement at the health food store and was quite disappointed that they only carried doses of 99mg.  That is a pitiful amount since we should be consuming about 4700mg of potassium everyday. A cup of brewed tea contains 88 mg so it is not worth buying a potassium supplement.

So since the best source of vitamins and minerals come from our foods I did a little research on www.nutritiondata.com to find the best sources of potassium on a low carbohydrate diet.

So here they are… 

(all foods measurements are for 1 cup unless otherwise noted)

Spices
Parsley 332 mg, Cilantro 83 mg, Basil 70 mg
Paprika (1 tblsp – 158mg)

Vegetables
Sweet red peppers – 314mg  , Tomatoes  – 427mg,  Beet Greens  290mg, Spinach – 167mg, Swiss Chard – 136mg , Portabella Mushrooms – 416mg, 1 Avocado 975mg – , Winter Squash –  1 cup 896mg, Zucchini – 325mg, Kale -299mg

Dairy
Whole Milk 349mg , Yogurt 380 mg

Nuts and Seeds
Sunflower Seeds 903mg, Flax Seeds 1366mg, Peanuts 1029mg , Almonds 1008mg, Coconut Meat 730 mg and water, Cashews 888mg

Fish
1 fillet of
Cod 954mg, Salmon 1434 mg, mackerel 352mg, tuna 408mg (1 can)

Meat 
Pork (chop 773 mg) and Beef (blade steak 471 mg)

Low Carb Fruit
Cantalope 427mg

Sticking to a wide range of *whole foods* on a low carb diet will decrease the risk of potassium deficiency. Bananas and potatoes are not the only high potassium foods. Eating and rotating the foods on this list will provide all the potassium needed on a low carb diet without having to supplement.

What has your experience been? I would love your feedback.

To your health and wellness,
Catherine Osthaus

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