The New DV for Potassium
The new DV for potassium is 4700 mg. That’s an increase from the old DV which was 3500 mg
According to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, most adults should consume 4,700 milligrams of potassium each day, but a study in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that the average potassium intake for adults is around 1,755 milligrams.
So what Does 4700 mg of Potassium Look Like? One Banana should cover it right? Nope! Try 11 Bananas! That impractical! So let’s see what else equals 4700 mg.
• 1 baked potato
• 1 cup Brussel sprouts
• ½ acorn squash
• 1 medium Artichoke
• 1 Banana
• ¼ of raisins
• 1 cup of orange juice
• ¾ of tomato juice
• 1 cups of peas
• ½ of pinto beans
• 1 Kiwi
Every day!
Or you could try
• breakfast of 1 cup of low-fat yogurt (579 mg potassium, 127 calories) with 1 cup of cantaloupe (473 mg potassium, 60 calories), and 1/3 cup almonds (349 mg potassium, 190 calories)
• lunch of 1/2 cup cooked Swiss chard (961 mg potassium, 35 calories) with 1/2 cup cooked white beans (595 mg potassium, 153 calories);
• dinner of 4 ounces cooked halibut (590 mg potassium, 160 calories), 1/2 cup cooked spinach (419 mg potassium, 21 calories), and a baked sweet potato (694 mg potassium, 131 calories)
This menu will get you the potassium you need.
The truth is fewer than 2 percent of US adults meet the daily requirement. That means that almost no one consumes the minimum amount of potassium recommended. Potassium is found in a wide range of nutritious foods so you wouldn't think that getting enough of it would be challenging. It is possible to get all the potassium you need through dietary sources, but it takes considerable effort to know how much potassium each food contains and track the amounts. It can be especially difficult to get the full 4,700 milligrams of potassium while still maintaining a diet that is within the recommended calorie limits (around 2,000 calories per day for most adults).
That’s where fortification can come in.
The food industry can help bridge the gap by adding potassium to foods. Adding potassium to your custom nutrient premix is a good start and we can help you determine the best sources and the right levels for your food or beverage.