Subject: potassium pill phobia: real or imagined?

Submitted by: Tom Kallenbach, Bangor, ME
 

I read Rob Report 4, so why do you advise against potassium pills?

Since I wrote Report 4, which contained a strongly phrased warning, I’ve been asked about my stance on potassium pills. Potassium is the main positively charged ion in the cells of our body, and is involved in regulating the electrical activity of the heart. “Lethal injections” use potassium to stop the heart. Acute excess or deficiency of potassium can throw the heart off cadence for a while, called arrhythmia. Arrhythmia is rarely life-threatening, but is to be avoided if possible. The only time potassium threatens heart function is when it enters the bloodstream in high concentration. This can’t happen when you get potassium from food, because there’s a multitude of other nutrients entering the bloodstream at the same time.

Pills offer the ability to introduce a single nutrient into your system. Therefore certain pills, like potassium, should not be taken on an empty stomach. If one follows the NHE Eating Plan diligently he or she should have a nearly optimal potassium/sodium ratio whereas those consuming a lot of processed foods are likely to have a low potassium/sodium ratio.

There are nutrients I believe are necessary for everyone to supplement, and potassium is not one of them. Even so, there are potential benefits to taking potassium supplements to ensure optimal intake especially for athletes; and a few hundred milligrams of potassium in pill form taken with a meal does not pose any real danger. But I believe those selling potassium pills have a responsibility to make clear to the consumer that, unlike other nutrients that do not serve as a heartbeat-regulating electrolyte, it is exceptionally important that you take potassium pills with food. Thanks for the opportunity to clarify this.