When it comes to your boosting your metabolism, potassium is a dieter’s best friend.
Think back to when the New Year’s weight loss resolution was made, then broken and now reinstituted in the frenzy to be ready for the dreaded swim suit season. This yearly cycle: diet, slack off, now really diet like you mean it, has occurred in the lives of weight challenged people since the inception of New Year's resolutions and swim suit season.
Along with changing your eating habits, you may want to add a little something to boost your efforts along. It's not new, it's not radical, but it does work. What is this wonderous substance? Potassium. New studies show that potassium might be a great place to start boosting your metabolism and your weight loss efforts.
A Balancing Act
The foods we eat can help us win the weight war in more ways than being on a diet low in calories and fat. The body is a complex system that functions best when all areas are balanced and happy. Like pulling on a loose string of a knit sweater, when one system is out of whack it affects others, making them perform at less-than-optimal levels.
The foods we eat can really help reboot the whole system and get it back on track. One of the first body functions that seems to slow down and perform at less-than-optimal levels is metabolism. This is not great news for anyone, but is especially devastating for dieters. If metabolism is sluggish any efforts at weight loss will likewise be sluggish.
Potassium is not a magic fat killing super supplement, but it can help the body figure out where the rev-up knobs on the metabolism are. It works in a back door sort of approach. Because the role of potassium in weight loss functions more like a middle man, it has often been discounted.
This is changing. The top ten foods for dieters – sea foods, nuts, and cheese – are all high in potassium content. Fruits and veggies, no brainer diet foods, are also universally high in potassium.
How Does It Work?
Well, potassium might not directly affect metabolism, but it does affect the body’s ability to use nutrients that do interact with the metabolism in powerful ways. People low in iron have classically low metabolism. In fact there is even a nifty illness called anemia to describe the lack of energy resulting from low iron levels. Yet iron supplements don’t solve the problem.
Why Not?
The problem is that an iron deficiency might not have been what caused low iron levels in the body. Without proper potassium levels the body is unable to process iron and make use of it. This is true of other metabolism-boosting nutrients like magnesium and calcium.
Along with dieting, try supplementing. It doesn’t have to be difficult. There are a few changes in the way one eats that can make a big difference in the girth of one’s waistline. This does not give anyone permission to eat three cheesecakes then pop a neat little potassium supplement expecting it to cancel out binge calories. It only works that way in dreams. With a balanced diet and a potassium supplement most people can get the metabolism boost they need.
Before You Go
Before you click off of this article, we want to stress that you always should talk to your doctor before making any lifestyle or dietary changes that could impact your health. You should never start a supplement, including a potassium supplement, without first talking to your doctor. They will look over your health profile and determine if a potassium supplement makes sense for you.
A lot of people don't realize that you can overdose on vitamins and minerals. After all, they're supposed to be good for you, so how can you possibly overdose on them? Too much of anything is a bad thing, and nutrients are included in that. Overdosing on any nutrient, including potassium, can cause unwanted side effects and complications.
In addition, always be on the lookout for obsessiveness when it comes to dieting. Becoming fixated on every last way to lose weight can eventually lead to a real problem. Eating disorders are not just for teenaged girls; anyone of any age, background, and gender can get one. If you believe that you're suffering from or are at risk for an eating disorder, speak to a mental health professional.
So there you have it. All of the information you need to know about potassium as a weight loss aid. Do you plan on adding more potassium to your diet? Check out all of our other articles on weight loss supplements and healthy recipes!
The content of this article should not be taken as professional medical advice. Always consult with a licensed medical professional before making decisions that impact your health.
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