What are the symptoms of potassium deficiency in the body

If you want to know whether your body is deficient in potassium, you can judge it through some symptoms. For example, some people often experience physical fatigue, weakness, or generalized muscle weakness or dyspnea, as well as difficulty breathing and swallowing. You should pay attention to these conditions because they may be some typical symptoms of potassium deficiency. Some patients may also experience symptoms such as tachycardia, palpitations, and cold sweats.

1. Hypokalemia can stimulate the neuromuscular system, causing symptoms such as fatigue, weakness, slow reaction, and even convulsions of the limbs, generalized muscle weakness, drowsiness and coma. It can also make breathing and swallowing difficult, and in severe cases can lead to suffocation. At the same time, some patients may also experience digestive system symptoms such as bitter taste in the mouth, nausea, vomiting, anorexia, abdominal distension, and constipation. The most dangerous consequence of hypokalemia is that it affects heart function. Patients will experience symptoms such as tachycardia, palpitations, cold sweats, cold limbs, etc. In severe cases, it can also lead to cardiomyopathy, low blood pressure, and even cardiac arrest.

2. Potassium supplementation: (1) When supplementing potassium, take it orally if possible; if you cannot take it orally, take it intravenously. (2) Intravenous potassium chloride should not be injected in a push. It is usually added to glucose solution for dripping. The concentration should not exceed 3% and the drip rate should not exceed 80 drops per minute. The total amount dripped per 24 hours should not exceed 6g-8g. (3) When accompanied by acidosis, potassium bicarbonate can be used instead. (4) For patients with impaired liver function, potassium glutamate can be used instead. (5) When the heart is obviously affected or accompanied by magnesium deficiency, L-potassium magnesium aspartate can be used.

3. Eat more potassium-rich foods, especially fruits and vegetables. Fruits rich in potassium include bananas, strawberries, citrus, grapes, grapefruit, watermelon, etc. Vegetables such as spinach, yam, edamame, amaranth, and onions are also rich in potassium. Various fruit juices, especially orange juice, are also rich in potassium and can replenish water and energy. The tea mentioned above has been measured to contain 1.1% to 2.3% potassium, so tea is the best cooling drink in summer.