Eating foods rich in potassium, such as avocados, bananas and spinach, could reduce your risk of heart conditions, hospitalisation and death by 24%, a study suggests.
Previous research has shown that cutting out salt from meals can slash your risk of heart problems. Reducing the number of meals to which you add salt or ditching it altogether can make a huge difference to your heart health.
Potassium increases the amount of salt your body removes from the bloodstream. In a study, scientists set out to understand whether more potassium might benefit people by reducing their cardiovascular risk.
The senior study author, Prof Henning Bundgaard, a professor at Copenhagen University hospital, said: “The human body evolved on a potassium-rich, sodium-poor diet – when we were born and raised on the savannah and eating [fruit and vegetables]. We 1756485776 tend to go to [a] modern diet that is processed foods and, the more processed, we see more and more sodium in the food and less potassium, meaning that the ratio between the two has changed from 10:1 to 1:2 – a dramatic change.
“Potassium is crucial for cardiac function and we know from observational studies that low potassium increases the risk of arrhythmias and heart failures and death. We also know that potassium can be increased.
“The simple question we asked in the trial was: would we benefit the patients by increasing potassium?”
The trial involved 1,200 heart patients in Denmark with implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs), half of whom were given dietary advice on how to boost their potassium levels.
“We have a list [of foods] that we gave to the patients. We followed general dietary instructions – [in Denmark known as] the pyramid of foods. White beets, beetroots, cabbage and so on are all high-content potassium-rich diets. We did not recommend meat, which is also potassium-rich, because it is also rich in sodium and counter-interacts the increase in potassium.”
A dietary increase in blood potassium levels was associated with a “significantly lower risk” – 24% – of heart conditions, heart-linked hospitalisation or death from any cause, the results showed. They were presented at the European Society of Cardiology congress in Madrid, the world’s largest heart conference.
Bundgaard said: “With a broader view we can say that higher dietary intake of potassium may not only benefit patients with heart disease but probably all of us, so maybe we should all reduce sodium and increase potassium content in our food.”
Dr Carrie Ruxton, a dietitian who was not involved with the study, said: “Everyone knows about cutting down on salt, but few people realise that increasing potassium is almost as important for preventing strokes and heart attacks.
“The European Food Safety Authority highlighted a lack of potassium across Europe as a major diet concern. In the UK, the latest National Diet and Nutrition Survey – published this year – shows that a third of teenagers and a quarter of adults are at risk of potassium deficiency, with implications for blood pressure control and muscle function.
“We can do more individually to boost our potassium intakes by eating more fruit, vegetables and fish. Fruit juices are particularly rich in potassium. Other key foods are spinach, lima beans, baked potato, yoghurt, banana and tuna.”
Dr Sonya Babu-Narayan, a consultant cardiologist and clinical director of the British Heart Foundation, said: “This trial from Denmark found that increasing blood potassium levels into the high normal range in people with ICDs improved patient outcomes, and importantly reduced their chances of needing a shock.
“If you’re advised by your doctor to improve your dietary potassium intake, you can do this by including more vegetables and fruit rich in potassium such as spinach, bananas or avocados in your diet, as well as pulses, fish, nuts and seeds.
“Don’t be tempted to try to increase your potassium intake with supplements unless supervised by your doctor, as ending up with too high a potassium level is dangerous – for example it can cause cardiac arrest.”