Potassium is a mineral the body needs for proper digestive function, for contracting muscles, for conducting electricity, for heart function and for nerve cell function. Many foods contain potassium, but some people do not consume enough of these foods or they have conditions that interfere with potassium absorption, which can lead to low potassium levels. Low potassium levels can be dangerous and should be corrected as soon as possible.
Recommended Potassium Intake
The federal Food and Nutrition Board set the adequate intake levels for potassium in 2004, saying that infants up to 6 months old should consume 400 mg of potassium per day and those between 7 and 12 months old should consume 700 mg per day. Children between the ages of 1 and 3 need 3,000 mg per day; those between the ages of 4 and 8, 3,800 mg per day and those between the ages of 9 and 13, 4,700 mg per day. Everyone age 14 and over should consume 4,700 mg per day, except for breastfeeding women, who should consume 5,100 mg per day.
Low Potassium Signs
Signs of low potassium, also called hypokalemia, include abnormal heart rhythms, constipation, fatigue, muscle cramps or twitches, paralysis and weakness. These signs often do not show up until potassium levels are very low, so many times doctors diagnose hypokalemia with a blood test. Once the diagnosis is made, your doctor will search for the cause of your low potassium to determine the best treatment.
Causes
Taking certain drugs, including diuretics, laxatives, antacids, some antibiotics, insulin, corticosteroids, amphotericin B, fluconazole and the asthma drugs theophylline, albuterol and terbutaline can lower potassium levels. Health conditions, such as vomiting, diarrhea, eating disorders, hypothyroidism and chronic kidney failure can also bring about hypokalemia. Getting too little potassium from food is rarely the reason for low potassium levels, since many foods contain potassium.
Treatment
Treatment usually involves taking potassium supplements in small doses throughout the day and treating any conditions that brought on your hypokalemia. Sometimes doctors may switch you to different medications if your medications contributed to your low potassium levels. If you cannot tolerate oral supplements, intravenous potassium is another alternative. Because getting too much potassium from supplements is dangerous, do not take these supplements without speaking with your doctor.
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