Potassium

What potassium does

Potassium is an essential mineral and the main positively charged ion inside cells, as sodium is outside them. The gradient between the two drives nerve signalling, muscle contraction and — critically — the regular electrical rhythm of the heart. It also has a direct role in blood pressure regulation, largely by counterbalancing sodium and helping the kidneys excrete it.

Most people eating a diet built on refined starch and processed food get too much sodium and too little potassium. Correcting that ratio is one of the better-supported dietary interventions for blood pressure.

Food sources available in Kenya

Potassium is abundant and inexpensive here. Bananas are the obvious one, but sweet potato, beans, njahi, ndengu, avocado, spinach, sukuma wiki, tomatoes and oranges all contribute meaningfully. Two or three of those in a day move the number substantially.

For most people, food is a better route than a supplement — the amounts are larger, the cost is lower, and the mineral arrives with fibre and other nutrients.

Why supplement doses are small

Potassium supplements are deliberately limited in strength in most markets, because too much potassium in the blood affects heart rhythm and can be dangerous. This is a genuine risk, not a formality.

It matters especially for people with reduced kidney function, and for anyone taking ACE inhibitors, ARBs or potassium-sparing diuretics — all common blood pressure medicines that raise potassium. If you take any of those, do not add a potassium supplement without your doctor's say-so.