• Learn About Soil
    • What’s New
    • Blog
    • Gold Nuggets
    • Farm Tours PRO
    • Webinar Replay PRO
    • Mastermind Replays PRO
    • Recommended Books
    • 7 Steps to Healthy Soils
  • Buy Courses
    • All Courses
    • Featured Courses
    • Animal Health
    • Biodynamics
    • Compost and Compost Teas
    • Farming Systems
    • Human Health
    • Soil Health
    • View all Categories
  • My Courses
  • Community PRO
    • Members Perks PRO
    • Regenerative Soil Mastermind CallPRO
    • Members Directory PRO
    • Member’s Map
  • Soil Blog

    Shopping Cart

    No products in the cart.

    Sign in Sign up

    Shopping Cart

    No products in the cart.

    • Log In
    • Register
    • Get Started
    • Learn About Soil
      • What’s New
      • Blog
      • Farm Tours
      • Podcast
      • Webinar Replay
    • Buy Courses
      • All Courses
      • Featured Courses
      • Short Courses

    The Many Benefits of Potassium – Part 2

    Recent research has found that women without hypertension consumed the most potassium (nearly 3,200 mg/day) had a 21% reduced risk of stroke. Adequate amounts of potassium are also associated with quicker recovery from exercise and improved muscle strength. As an electrolyte, potassium helps to regulate the fluid balance in your cells and throughout your body. This fluid balance is essential to maintaining life, preventing dehydration at the cellular level and maintaining brain function. For example, potassium is important in the transmission of nerve impulses in your brain, spinal cord and peripheral nervous system. Nerve impulses transmitting information from one nerve to the next happens as the result of electrical activity. This activity is what an electrocardiogram measures as it tracks heart activity.

    Low levels of potassium have also been linked with high levels of insulin and glucose, associated with metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes. These results have been found in several studies, leading researchers to recommend dietary choices that boost potassium levels and reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes.

    Sodium/Potassium Ratio Is Key to Strong Muscles and Relaxed Arteries

    The key to relaxing your arterial walls and reducing your blood pressure is the sodium-to-potassium ratio. If you eat a lot of processed foods and few fresh vegetables, there’s a good chance your sodium-to-potassium ratio is unbalanced. It’s generally recommended that you consume five times more potassium than sodium. This ratio is far more important for your health than your overall salt intake and imbalance in this ratio can not only lead to high blood pressure but also contribute to a number of other health problems, including:

    • Kidney stones
    • Memory decline
    • Cataracts
    • Osteoporosis
    • Erectile dysfunction
    • Stomach ulcers
    • Rheumatoid arthritis
    • Stomach cancer

    Real Food Is the Answer

    Getting nutrients from your food instead of supplements is preferable as your food contains more than a single nutrient and in different forms. For instance, potassium found in fruits and vegetables is potassium citrate or potassium malate, while supplements are often potassium chloride. The citrate and malate forms help produce alkali, which may promote bone health and preserve lean muscle mass as you age. Bone loss may lead to brittle bones or even osteoporosis. While potassium in fruits and vegetables may help build bone health, potassium chloride may not. As researcher Dr. Bess Dawson-Hughes from Tufts University explains:

    “If you don’t have adequate alkali to balance the acid load from the grains and protein in a typical American diet, you lose calcium in the urine and you have bone loss … When the body has more acid than it is easily able to excrete, bone cells get a signal that the body needs to neutralize the acid with alkali … And bone is a big alkali reservoir, so the body breaks down some bone to add alkali to the system.”

    People who were in the neutral range for net acid excretion and have a fairly healthy balance for bone and muscle health, were eating just over eight servings of fruits and vegetables per day along with 5.5 servings of grains. When they rounded this out, it came to about half as many grains as fruits and vegetables. A simple recommendation to increase your alkali (and potassium) is to eat more vegetables and fewer grains and processed foods in general. When cooking from scratch, you have complete control over how much salt you add and when you do use salt, make sure its unrefined and minimally processed.

    Soil Lovers at Soil Learning Center Say:

    Our choice is Himalayan pink salt, rich in naturally-occurring trace minerals needed for healthy bones, fluid balance and overall health.

    Download PDF

    🔒 PRO Access Only

    Some content on this page is locked to members only!

    Dig Deeper and unearth your connection to the soil. Soil PRO membership is a revolutionary community that connects you with all things soil-related, from global challenges right down to the soil in your own backyard.

    Unlock the years of video archives, search the vault for "soil-utions", connect with mentors who can help you fast track and join an online community of soil loving enthusiasts on our Mastermind Calls.

    It's non-stop soil learning goodness!
    UPGRADE TO PRO NOW
    Locked

    We acknowledge First Nations owners of Country and their continuing connection to the land, waters and culture across Australia and from all over the world. As Soil Lovers we respectfully acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of all the lands on which we work and pay our respects to the Elders past present and emerging. When caring for your land take a moment in stillness to respect the wisdom your land is sharing with us.

    Facebook-f Youtube Microphone-alt

    Latest Soil Blogs

    Worms Are The Answer!

    Super nutrition for revitalised soils

    Support local while you FindGoodFood with tasty new app

    How Brix Meters work!

    Is the food that you are growing or eating bursting with nutrients?

    Why Soil Organic Matter actually matters

    Soil Matters Monthly Newsletter!

    Dig into the most up-to-date news on soil health and regenerative trends – with community tips from top experts and mentors! Sign Up Now!

    Your information is 100% secure. We will NEVER share your information with anyone.

    ©2006 - 2022 All rights reserved​.

    Made with 🤎 Created by Soil Lovers at Farming Secrets.

    Clear Clear All

    Omg... this sale is crazy!

    Days
    Hours
    Minutes
    Seconds

    hurry up and grab these deals:

    • 50% Courses
    • 30% Digital Downloads
    • 30% Memberships
    View all the deals