Fit and Functional

List of High Potassium Foods

By: Charles DeFrancesco
http://www.fitandfunctional.com

GENERAL INFORMATION:

What is it?

• Potassium is a mineral that is found in most foods. You need to eat the right foods each day to keep your blood level of potassium in a healthy range. This will help keep your muscles, heart, nervous system, and digestive system healthy.
• Your body may lose potassium if you use diuretics (water pills) or other medicines. Eating high potassium foods can help correct this problem. A high potassium diet means eating 2000-4000 milligrams (mg) of potassium per day.
• Kidney problems or other illnesses may cause you to have too much potassium in your blood. You may then need to limit the amount of potassium in your diet. A low potassium diet means eating less than 2000 mg of potassium per day.

Care:

• A dietitian (di-uh-tih-shun) or caregiver will tell you how many mg of potassium to eat each day. Choose foods from each group below that add up to the amount of potassium suggested by your dietitian.
• Eating the right amount is just as important as choosing the right foods. Many foods in the meat, fish, poultry, fats, and bread groups are low in potassium. Ask your dietitian about foods that are not on these lists.
• Your caregiver wants you to eat ____ mg of potassium per day. The mg of potassium in each food are listed in parentheses ( ) on the lists below.

Serving Sizes: Use the portion sizes below to measure foods and serving sizes.

• 1-1/2 cup (12 ounces) of liquid is the size of a soda-pop can.
• 1 cup (8 ounces) of food is the size of a large handful.
• 1/2 cup (4 ounces) of food is about half of a large handful.
• 2 tablespoons (Tbsp) is about the size of a large walnut.
• 1 tablespoon (Tbsp) is about the size of the tip of your thumb (from the last crease).
• 1 teaspoon (tsp) is about the size of the tip of your little finger (from the last crease).
• A serving size means the size of food after it is cooked. Three ounces of cooked meat is about the size of a deck of cards.

Breads and Starches:

• Low Potassium (less than 150 mg of potassium): Eat ____ servings per day from this list.
  • 1 bagel (48 mg), corn tortilla (39 mg) or flour tortilla (46 mg)
  • 1 slice bread (44 mg)
  • 1 cup cold cereal without bran or wheat germ (28 mg)
  • 1 cup cooked white rice (15 mg), or pasta (43 mg)
  • 1 cup hot wheat cereal (62 mg) or oatmeal (130 mg)
  • 2 medium cookies without nuts or chocolate (56 mg)
• Medium Potassium (150 to 300 mg of potassium): Eat ____ servings per day from this list.
  • 1 oat bran bagel (155 mg)
• High Potassium (more than 300 mg of potassium): Eat ____ servings per day from this list.

• 1/2 cup bran cereal (405 mg)
• 1 tablespoon wheat bran (355 mg) or germ (550 mg)

Dairy:

• Low Potassium (less than 150 mg of potassium): Eat ____ servings per day from this list.
  • 1 inch cube of American (46 mg), cheddar (28 mg), Swiss (31 mg), mozzarella (24 mg), or other semi-hard cheeses
  • 1/4 cup cottage cheese (54 mg)
  • 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese (5 mg)
  • 2 tablespoons sour cream (34 mg)
• Medium Potassium (150 to 300 mg of potassium): Eat ____ servings per day from this list.
  • 1/2 cup ice cream or ice milk (186 mg)
  • 1/2 cup ricotta cheese (155 mg)
• High Potassium (more than 300 mg potassium): Eat ____ servings per day from this list.

• 1 cup buttermilk (371 mg)
• 1 cup milk (all kinds) (374 mg)
• 1 cup yogurt (plain or fruit flavored) (402 mg)

Drinks:

• Low Potassium (less than 150 mg potassium): Drink ____ servings per day from this list.
  • 1 cup brewed tea (86 mg)
  • 2 teaspoons instant coffee powder (128 mg)
  • 3/4 cup brewed coffee (96 mg)
  • l cup cranberry juice cocktail (36 mg)
  • 1 cup liquid Kool Aid ® (made from powder) (0 mg)
  • l cup lemonade (3 mg) or pear nectar (33 mg)
• Medium Potassium (150 to 300 mg potassium): Drink ____ servings per day from this list.
  • 1/2 cup apple(151 mg), grape (167 mg), orange (218 mg) or grapefruit (189 mg) juice
  • 1/2 cup hot cocoa made with milk (210 mg)
  • 1/2 cup milk (all kinds) (187 mg)
  • 1/2 cup pineapple juice (168 mg)
• High Potassium (more than 300 mg potassium): Drink ____ servings per day from this list.

• 1 cup milk (any kind) (374 mg)
• 1/2 cup prune (530 mg), or tomato (400 mg) juice
• 3/4 cup vegetable juice (351 mg)

Fats, Sweets, and Other:

• Low Potassium (less than 150 mg potassium):
  • 1 tsp butter (1 mg) or margarine (5 mg)
  • 5 medium black olives (1 mg)
  • 10 small green olives (1 mg)
  • 1 ounce semisweet chocolate (140 mg)
• Medium Potassium (150 to 300 mg potassium):
  • 2 tablespoons cocoa powder (152 mg)
  • 1 ounce nuts, or 25 small peanuts (187 mg)
• High Potassium (more than 300 mg potassium):

• 1 ounce unsweetened chocolate (310 mg)
• 1 tablespoon blackstrap molasses (498 mg)
• 2 ounces sunflower seeds (392 mg)

Fruit:

• Low Potassium (less than 150 mg potassium): Eat ____ servings per day from this list.
  • 1 small apple (140 mg)
  • 1/2 cup applesauce (90) or canned fruit cocktail (115 mg)
  • 1/2 cup blueberries (64 mg), raspberries (94 mg), or strawberries (124 mg)
  • 10 green, purple, or red grapes (126 mg)
  • 1/2 cup canned mandarin oranges (98 mg) or pineapple (133 mg)
  • 1 small tangerine (122 mg)
• Medium Potassium (150 to 300 mg potassium): Eat ____ servings per day from this list.
  • 4 medium dates (216 mg)
  • 1/2 medium grapefruit (171 mg)
  • 1 medium kiwi fruit (252 mg)
  • 1 medium peach (171 mg), nectarine (288 mg), orange (217 mg), or pear (208 mg)
  • 2 plums (228 mg)
  • 1 cup watermelon cubes (186 mg)
• High Potassium (more than 300 mg potassium): Eat ____ servings per day from this list.

• 3 medium (fresh) (314 mg) or 7 halves of (dried) apricots (337 mg)
• 1/2 of a 9-inch banana (371 mg)
• 1 cup cantaloupe (494 mg) or honeydew (461 mg) cubes
• 4 medium dried figs (532 mg)
• 1 medium mango (323 mg) or papaya (781 mg)
• 5 prunes (313 mg)
• 1/3 cup raisins (373 mg)

Meats / Meat Substitutes:

• Low Potassium (less than 150 mg potassium): Eat ____ servings per day from this list.
  • 1 ounce meat (80 mg), fish (100 mg), poultry (60 mg), or cheese (30 mg), or 1 large egg (63 mg)
• Medium Potassium (150 to 300 mg potassium): Eat ____ servings per day from this list.
  • 2 tablespoons peanut butter (239 mg)
• High Potassium (more than 300 mg potassium): Eat ____ servings per day from this list.

• 1/2 cup raw firm tofu (305 mg)
• 1/2 cup cooked dried peas (355 mg), beans (356 mg), or lentils (366 mg)

Vegetables (list below means cooked vegetables unless raw or frozen are listed):

• Low Potassium (less than 150 mg potassium): Eat ____ servings per day from this list.
  • 1/2 cup bean sprouts (23 mg) or green beans (86 mg)
  • 1/2 cup cucumber slices (80 mg)
  • 1/2 cooked mustard greens (141 mg) or turnip greens (146 mg)
  • 1/2 cup onions (124 mg) or frozen peas (134 mg)
  • 2 small radishes (22 mg)
  • 1/2 cup summer squash (173 mg), coleslaw (109 mg), or diced turnip (105 mg)
• Medium Potassium (150 to 300 mg potassium): Eat ____ servings per day from this list.
  • 1/2 cup asparagus (154 mg) or beets (259 mg)
  • 1/2 large bell pepper (197 mg)
  • 2/3 cup broccoli (223 mg) or carrots (177 mg)
  • 1 cup raw cauliflower (152 mg) or mushroom pieces (130 mg)
  • 1/2 cup celery (186 mg), okra (161 mg), or zucchini squash (173 mg)
  • 1/2 cup corn kernels (204 mg)
• High Potassium (more than 300 mg potassium): Eat ____ servings per day from this list.
  • 1/2 medium avocado (549 mg)
  • 1/2 cup cooked beet greens (654 mg), Swiss chard (483 mg), or spinach (419 mg)
  • 1/2 cup mashed potato (305 mg) or 1 small potato (410 mg)
  • 1/2 cup pumpkin (301 mg) or winter squash (446 mg)
  • 1/2 cup tomato juice (400 mg) or sauce (453 mg), or 1 medium tomato (303 mg)
  • 1 small sweet potato (397 mg)