Potassium plays a crucial role in maintaining your health, since it is used to keep your muscular and cardiovascular systems running smoothly, the University of Maryland Medical Center notes. This essential mineral also plays a vital part in metabolism and digestion, assists in regulating the acid-base balance of your body, and contributes to the production of proteins from amino acids. Potassium can also have an effect on your vision, but only through an indirect connection between this mineral and your risk for stroke and hypertension.
Stroke and the Effect on Vision
A stroke is the most common cause of disability in adults, and having one can have serious, debilitating effects on your vision, the Royal National Institute for Blind People reports. Possible visual problems may include hemianopia, or loss of visual field; diplopia, or eye muscle and nerve problems; blurred vision; and double vision. Such problems are common in stroke victims, especially those who have suffered a stroke to the right side of the brain. The damage that this does affects the visual pathways of the eye and the brain’s capacity to process images.
Hypertension and Vision
You don’t need to experience a full stroke in order for your vision to be negatively affected. Even hypertension can potentially impair your eyesight, as MedlinePlus explains. Hypertensive retinopathy refers to damage done to the retina due to high blood pressure. The blood vessels located at the back of your eye, in the retina, can be severely damaged if you have had prolonged hypertension. This may be caused by poor blood flow in the vessels or outright blockages. If you smoke, have a high cholesterol level, or have diabetes, then you are at a much higher risk for hypertensive retinopathy.
Effects of Potassium
Potassium does not have a direct effect on vision. It can indirectly improve or help prevent vision-related problems linked with hypertension and stroke. Several large-scale medical studies have shown that a regular, healthy amount of potassium in your diet can significantly lower the risk of both hypertension and stroke, the Linus Pauling Institute reports. This effect is limited to dietary potassium, however; mineral supplements do not seem to yield the same benefits. Lowering blood pressure is the only treatment for hypertensive retinopathy, MedlinePlus explains; therefore, ensuring adequate potassium intake can be highly beneficial.
Getting Enough Potassium
The adequate intake for potassium, according to standards set by the Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine, is 4,700 mg for both males and females 19 years and older. This is the minimum level that has been found to reduce blood pressure and the risk of kidney stones. Dietary potassium is available from many sources, and the richest foods for this mineral are fruits and vegetables, the Linus Pauling Institute reports. Bananas, potatoes, prunes, citrus fruits, tomatoes, artichokes, broccoli, raisins and lima beans are all excellent sources of potassium. Other foods such as dairy products, meat and fish also contain large amounts of potassium.
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