September/October 2004
Page 3
Potassium, Important Mission
Eating foods like apricots, bananas, kidney beans, pears, potatoes, spinach, and tomatoes every day not only add flavour, fibre and fluid to your diet, they just might add up to a longer life. The foods are good sources of potassium, a mineral that has been linked to decreasing blood pressure and possibly decreasing the risk of stroke. According to a medical report cited by the Harvard Health Letter, people who eat a diet rich in potassium (8 servings of fruit and vegetables a day) were the least likely to suffer a stroke. In addition, those whose doctors prescribed a potassium supplement along with a diuretic to treat hypertension were at a significantly reduced risk of a stroke. If you are not taking a diuretic, you should not take a potassium supplement because you can get a toxic dose of this mineral. But if you do take a diuretic for hypertension ( high blood pressure), that is potassium wasting, talk to your doctor about a prescription for potassium. Adding fruits and vegetables to your diet is always a safe way to increase your intake of vital nutrients that can help you protect your health. Avoiding a stroke is just one more reason to increase your intake of these power packed foods. (If you have kidney disease, check with your doctor before increasing your potassium intake.)
SOURCE: Metro Washington; Battle Creek, MI; Southern Maryland County; via: The ReRoute, Evansville, IN, April 2004, via Inside Out On-line Sep/Oct 2004.
Return to This Issue Index
Return to Inside Out Home Page
Return to WOA Home Page