High potassium may help lower blood pressure

SATURDAY August 2, 2008 (foodconsumer.org) -- High dietary intake of potassium may reduce a person's risk of developing high blood pressure, and lower blood pressure in people with hypertension, according to a study published this month in a special supplement to The Journal of Clinical Hypertension.

Dr. Mark C. Houston from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, and Dr. Karen J. Harper from Harper Medical Communications, Inc., in Nashville came to this possible connection after reviewing published studies on the topic.

They also suggested that vegetarians and other isolated populations have a very low incidence of heart disease because they have an adequate intake of potassium in their diet.

In such populations often consuming diets low in sodium and high in potassium-rich fruits and vegetables, only 1 percent of people suffer from hypertension, compared to nearly 33 percent in the industrialized countries where people eat diets full of processed foods and with high intakes of dietary sodium.

Currently the American diet contains twice the amount of recommended sodium as provided for in dietary guidelines, but only half the recommended amount of potassium.

Houston and Harper said if the potassium intake is boosted, incidence of high blood pressure could drop by more than 10 percent.

Potassium rich foods include bananas, potatoes with skin, prune juice and plums, oranges and orange juice, tomatoes and tomato juice, raisins, lima beans, spinach, almonds, sunflower seeds, and molasses.

By Sue Mueller, and edited by Heather Kelley.
Aug 2, 2008 - 2:00:07 PM