What is potassium?

Question

Could anyone help mewith my question?

Answer 1

a chemical element. It has the symbol K (Latin: kalium) and atomic number 19. The name "potassium" comes from the word "potash", as potassium was first isolated from potash. Potassium is a soft silvery-white metallic alkali metal that occurs naturally bound to other elements in seawater and many minerals. It oxidizes rapidly in air and is very reactive, especially towards water. In many respects, potassium and sodium are chemically similar, although organisms in general, and animal cells in particular, treat them very differently

Answer 2

the answer before mine was excellent for explaining it's element definition

for medical purposes:

potassium works along with sodium in the body to maintain proper water and electrolyte balance. it is also responsible for sending nerve impulses to help your muscle contract.

Answer 3

About Potassium:
Potassium is a dietary mineral that is generally quite abundant in our diets. Most healthy people get plenty of potassium from dietary sources. Due to illness, however, some people need to restrict their dietary potassium and some people need to get more potassium from their diets. If you have any questions about your potassium levels, please speak to your doctor.

Why We Need Potassium:
We need potassium:

as a component for balancing the pH of our bodies
for normal water balance in our bodies
for normal muscle growth
for healthy nervous system and brain function
Measuring Potassium With Blood Tests:
Most of our potassium is found inside the cells in our bodies; only about 2% of the potassium in our bodies is found the blood. Our bodies like to keep that amount of potassium fairly level within a nice healthy range.

Abnormal Blood Potassium Levels:
Blood potassium levels may fluctuate due to kidney disease, diabetes, vomiting, as a side effect to certain medications, fluctuating hormone levels, amount of potassium in the diet and blood pH.

Hyperkalemia:
Hyperkalemia is a condition where there is too much potassium in the blood. Usually this is due to an underlying medical condition such as a kidney disease or diabetes. Doctors want to keep an eye on elevated potassium levels because very high levels of potassium in our bodies can become very bad for our hearts.

Hypokalemia:
Hypokalemia is a condition where the potassium levels are too low. This may happen because a person doesn't eat enough potassium containing foods. More commonly, potassium levels become too low from digestive problems like chronic diarrhea or excessive vomiting. Certain hormonal disorders such as Cushing’s disease can also cause low levels of potassium. Some drugs like diuretics and laxatives can also cause hypokalemia.

Potassium in Foods:
If your potassium levels are too high, you doctor may tell you to go on a potassium-restricted diet. If your potassium levels are too low, your doctor may tell you to get more potassium in your diet. Here is a list of food sources for potassium. If you need to restrict your potassium, avoid the foods with moderate to high levels of potassium, and if you need more potassium, be sure to choose more foods that contain more potassium, or consider taking supplemental potassium:

Foods High in Potassium
Apricots
Artichokes
Avocados
Bananas
Cantaloupe
Cod
Dates
Dry beans (i.e. kidney beans and navy beans)
Figs
Flounder
Greens
Honeydew melons
Kiwi
Lentils
Nuts
Oranges
Peaches
Potatoes
Prunes
Pumpkins
Raisins
Salmon
Sardines
Potassium-based salt replacements
Tomatoes
Watermelons
Foods Moderate in Potassium
Apples
Broccoli
Brussels sprouts
Beets
Carrots
Celery
Cherries
Eggplant
Mango
Mushrooms
Okra
Peaches
Pears
Peanut butter
Plums
Peppers
Foods Low in Potassium
Asparagus
Berries
Cabbage
Cauliflower
Corn
Cucumber
Grapes
Grapefruit
Green beans
Onions
Peas
Pineapple
Radishes
Rhubarb
Tangerines
Turnips

reff:http://nutrition.about.com/od/foodfun/p/potassium_foods.htm

Answer 4

eat a banana they are full of it !