what can you use to make liquid potassium taste better

[Last updated 10th Feb, 2018]

Potassium citrate is a mixture of potassium salt and citric acid.

While it's often used as a food condiment, it can too meliorate heart and bone health and help conditions like kidney stones.

This article looks at potassium citrate and how and when to utilise this product safely.

What is Potassium Citrate?

Potassium is an essential mineral establish in various fiber-rich foods like vegetables, fruits, nuts and legumes.

If y'all follow a largely establish-based diet, there'southward a good chance you're getting plenty potassium. But if your diet includes more processed foods, you may not be consuming an adequate corporeality.

Dissimilar other essential nutrients (similar calcium, vitamin D and B-vitamins), potassium is non fortified (added) in staple foods. This is due to its rapid touch on blood pressure.

However, when potassium is consumed from natural sources similar these, the accompanying fiber slows its absorption. This allows it to safely perform its role in the body.

In supplemental or medication form, potassium is combined with other molecules like carbonate, chloride or hydroxide to form salts.

Potassium linked to citric acid forms potassium citrate.

Potassium citrate construction. Epitome source.

Roles of Potassium

This mineral serves many purposes in the body, but information technology mostly acts every bit an electrolyte that helps command musculus and nerve part.

Potassium is likewise vital to heart wellness, urinary function, acid-base rest, gastrointestinal motility and various enzyme reactions.

Because of these roles, it can be used to support a multifariousness of health weather.

Potassium citrate in item produces alkalizing furnishings in the body, helping to balance urinary pH levels.

Summary: Potassium is an essential mineral constitute in many cobweb-rich whole foods. It's of import for diverse functions in the trunk similar electrolyte and acid-base of operations balance. Potassium citrate is a salt that helps regulate urinary pH levels.

Possible Health Benefits of Potassium Citrate

Potassium citrate offers a few notable health benefits, especially for the kidneys.

Potassium Citrate and Kidney Stones

Potassium citrate is most often used to meliorate kidney stones.

Citrate specifically helps to remove protons, or positively charged atoms, which reduces acidity in the urine.

Additionally, potassium citrate crystallizes rock-forming salts like calcium oxalate, calcium phosphate and uric acid in the bladder.

Crystallization happens considering of ii mechanisms of potassium citrate. It increases urine pH, making it more than alkaline. Information technology also increases urine citrate levels, which lowers the risk of stone formation.

Studies evidence that using potassium citrate decreases stone formation and recurrence.

Substantially, it protects against increased urine saturation resulting from high-protein diets.

Citrate in the urine is able to bind to calcium, making information technology more soluble and less able to create calcium oxalate stones (1, ii, 3, 4, 5).

Overall, maintaining acrid-base of operations balance in the bladder is key for preventing all types of kidney stones (half-dozen).

A recent Cochrane review plant that potassium citrate may aid reduce recurrent calcium urinary stones in children. Notwithstanding, many children couldn't handle the treatment due to adverse side effects. The authors had express conviction in this finding and expressed the demand for more bear witness (7).

A study on 57 adults with agile kidney stones showed that potassium citrate therapy helped to increase urine pH, citrate and potassium levels compared to placebo. The study ended that potassium citrate helped reduce rock formation with only two subjects experiencing mild side effects (2).

Potassium Citrate and Strokes

Potassium's effect on blood pressure and heart rate may help reduce the risk of stroke.

A 12-year prospective study showed that every 390mg increment in dietary potassium led to a 40% reduction in stroke-associated expiry (8).

Also, a meta-analysis on potassium and cardiovascular risk factors reviewed 22 studies. It found that potassium intake reduced blood pressure in those with hypertension and helped lower the take chances of stroke (9).

The FDA is currently collecting information on potassium citrate utilize and stroke run a risk.

So far, of the one,749 people who experienced side effects while on potassium citrate, 15 or 0.86% have had a stroke, peculiarly in older males (10).

Potassium Citrate and Bone Health

In that location'south mixed testify on whether potassium citrate is beneficial to bone health.

When the trunk is also acidic (often the example when eating the Standard American Nutrition), calcium is pulled from the bones to help alkalinize the blood.

Therefore, information technology'south important to maintain proper pH balance for bone health, fifty-fifty if your calcium intake is adequate (11).

In one report, 52 adults supplemented with 0, 2345 or 3519 mg/twenty-four hour period of potassium citrate for vi months. The researchers found that 3519mg/twenty-four hour period helped meliorate calcium residuum, which could theoretically protect the bones (12).

Some other study saw significant increases in os mineral density (BMD) in healthy elderly people without osteoporosis who took 2345mg of potassium citrate for 24 months. They likewise received calcium and vitamin D supplements, which may have played a role also (13).

In healthy, postmenopausal women, however, the use of supplemental potassium citrate over two years didn't help reduce bone turnover or increase BMD (14).

These results dissimilarity with the show establish in a laboratory report, which showed that potassium citrate could foreclose osteopenia (low BMD) progression (fourteen, xv).

Summary: Potassium citrate can assist forestall kidney stone formation, and may also reduce the risk of a stroke. There is also conflicting evidence on whether it can better bone health. Overall, it's safest to consume potassium from food sources.

Potassium Citrate Recommendations

This product should be used under medical supervision.

Prescription potassium citrate is often sold under the trade name Urocit-K, although generic forms are available.

It tin besides be purchased as a nutritional supplement on its own or within a multivitamin/mineral formulation.

Beneath is a list of tips to follow when using potassium citrate:

• E'er accept it with food
• Infinite information technology out into multiple doses throughout the day
• Take it with at least eight oz. of water
• Practice non crush or dissever the tablets
• Do not use in conjunction with table salt substitutes, which often incorporate potassium
• Do non modify your dose without consulting your doc

Dosing

Dosage amounts will vary past person.

In general, good for you adults crave iv.7 grams of potassium per day.

With hypokalemia (low potassium levels), dosing increases to treat and prevent the deficiency. Serum potassium levels should stay between 3.5 and five mEq/L.

Dosing can also exist monitored based on urinary citrate levels, which should be between 320-640mg/twenty-four hour period.

You should not exceed 7,819mg per day or serious wellness consequences may upshot.

Summary: Only use potassium citrate as recommended by a medical professional. They volition help find the appropriate dose for you to keep serum potassium and urinary citrate levels in rest.

Side Effects of Potassium Citrate

Many side effects can develop while using potassium citrate.

Blood and urine testing, every bit well as electrocardiographs (ECG), can assess your wellness status while using potassium citrate.

Large doses over the recommended amount may cause cardiac arrhythmia.

Other side effects include:

• Allergic reactions
• Bloody or black stools
• Confusion, dizziness
• Irregular heart charge per unit, chest pain, increased blood pressure
• Muscle twitching
• Seizures
• Restlessness, irritability
• Numbness in hands/feet
• Stomach pain
• Painful swallowing
• Unusual bleeding/bruising
• Unusual weakness

Report these side furnishings to your doctor.

Who Should Avoid Potassium Citrate

Those with the following medical conditions should avoid potassium citrate:

• Severe kidney disease
• Centre damage
• Addison's illness
• Loftier levels of potassium or sodium in the blood
• Severe dehydration

Discuss with your dr. the condom and ceremoniousness of using potassium citrate with the following conditions:

• Diabetes
• Heart disease
• Depression blood calcium levels
• Kidney disease
• Tum ulcers
• Swallowing difficulty
• Urinary tract infections
• Chronic diarrhea
• Pregnant or trying to get pregnant
• Breastfeeding
• Allergy to potassium citrate or other preservatives

If you are using certain medications or supplements, let your physician know prior to starting a potassium citrate regimen.

Many ordinarily used products collaborate with potassium citrate including NSAIDS, antacids, cold/allergy medications, aspirin and diuretics.

Also, many nutritional supplements like multivitamins and mineral formulas contain potassium. Be sure to written report their use to your doctor to avoid overdosing.

Summary: Loftier-risk side effects tin occur when using potassium citrate, and then it'south of import to be closely monitored by a wellness professional. Report all medications and supplements yous're taking to avoid interactions or overdosing. Those with certain severe medical weather condition impacting the heart, adrenals or kidneys should avert using potassium citrate.

Potassium Citrate for Dogs

Dog owners may utilize potassium citrate to help their pup with urinary stones and painful or frequent urination.

One written report fed 12 good for you dogs either a standard diet or one with 150mg potassium citrate per kilogram of body weight, twice per day.

The authors institute that supplementation had a limited effect, with a slight increase in urine pH of 0.ii units. Either way, if yous choose to supplement, they recommend you practice so with food, twice per day (xvi).

Overall, the inquiry is thin on this topic despite various pet-friendly potassium citrate products available on the marketplace. Talk with your veterinarian if you're because using potassium citrate for your pet.

Summary: Potassium citrate can be used to help dogs with urinary problems, though there is limited inquiry to prove this. Talk with your vet for safety and dosing recommendations.

Should You Use Potassium Citrate?

Potassium citrate tin can aid people, and sometimes dogs, with treating kidney stones.

It may too assist reduce the risk of stroke, but must exist used with circumspection and under the supervision of a medical professional person.

The evidence for its effects on os wellness are inconclusive, so information technology's all-time to play it safe and obtain acceptable potassium intake from food sources.

Dosing is based on individual need to assist maintain good for you serum potassium levels.

A broad assortment of serious side effects tin consequence if used improperly. If you suffer from middle, kidney or adrenal disease, ask your dr. if potassium citrate is advisable for you.

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Source: https://www.dietvsdisease.org/potassium-citrate-everything-need-know-explained-plain-english/

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