Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2018 Sep-Oct;53(5):184-195.
doi: 10.1097/NT.0000000000000298. Epub 2018 Sep 19.

What Is the Evidence Base for a Potassium Requirement?

Connie M Weaver  1   2   3   4   5 , Michael S Stone  1   2   3   4   5 , Andrea J Lobene  1   2   3   4   5 , Dennis P Cladis  1   2   3   4   5 , Joanna K Hodges  1   2   3   4   5
Affiliations

What Is the Evidence Base for a Potassium Requirement?

Connie M Weaver et al. Nutr Today. 2018 Sep-Oct.

Abstract

Increased intake of potassium should be promoted to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and stroke and to protect against bone loss, but confidence in recommended intakes depends on the strength of the evidence. All public health recommendations are considerably higher than current average intakes. Evidence on which current potassium intake recommendations for the United States, Europe, and globally have limitations. More recent evidence reviewed by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality affirms that more evidence is needed to define specific values for optimal potassium intakes. Potassium requirements undoubtedly vary with a number of factors including energy needs, race, and intake of sodium.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

FIGURE.
FIGURE.
Current potassium intakes in populations around the world. Few countries meet the reference guidelines put forth by World Health Organization and European Food Safety Administration, and none meet the Institute of Medicine recommendation.,,–
None
No caption available
None
No caption available
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee. Report of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2005. Washington, DC: US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service; 2004.
    1. Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee. Report of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2010. Washington, DC: US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service; 2011.
    1. US Department of Health and Human Services and US Department of Agriculture. 2015–2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. 8th ed. December 2015. http://health.gov/dietaryguidelines/2015/guidelines/. Accessed June 7, 2018.
    1. Food and Nutrition Board, Institute of Medicine. Sodium and chloride. In: Dietary Reference Intakes for Water, Potassium, Sodium, Chloride, and Sulfate. Washington, DC: National Academies Press; 2005:269–423.
    1. Bailey RL, Parker EA, Rhodes DG, et al. Estimating sodium and potassium intakes and their ratio in the American diet: data from the 2011–2012 NHANES. J Nutr. 146:745–750. 2016. - PMC - PubMed