5 Fruits that you wouldn’t know have more potassium than a Banana
The banana is mistakenly considered the fruit richest in potassium, but not everyone knows that there are foods that contain even more.
Sweating a lot leads to a loss of important fluids and minerals like potassium, but how do you replenish them properly? Not only bananas, but also other foods are valuable sources of this element.
In the summer, it’s vital to stay hydrated and constantly re-energize. The mineral salts are lost through perspiration, especially if you play sports. When you sweat, in fact, the body deprives itself of essential elements for survival, such as sodium, magnesium and potassium. In particular, too low a potassium level in the blood can lead to problems such as weakness, fatigue, muscle spasms and cramps, digestive problems (constipation), palpitations and even difficulty breathing.
So how do you get the right level of this element at all times? Before resorting to food supplements and other artificial preparations, much can be done at the table, thanks to a diet including foods rich in potassium, such as fish, dried fruits and bananas. But these four unsuspected foods can really make a difference and dramatically increase your daily potassium intake.
Avocado – Surprisingly, half an avocado (about 100 grams) already contains 487 milligrams of potassium, or about 10% of your daily requirement. Unfortunately, this fruit is also high in calories and fat. It is therefore not prudent to use it as the sole source of this mineral.
Kiwi – Like the avocado, the kiwi also contains more potassium than a banana (400 mg/100 g pe) versus 350 mg/100 g pe.
Gooseberries – Gooseberries also surpass bananas in concentration: 100g of these fruits contain around 375g pe).
Spinach – Spinach is known to be an important source of iron, but that’s not all. It also contains vitamin K, magnesium and sodium. Additionally, a cup of frozen spinach provides about 540 milligrams of potassium (which is 12% of the daily requirement).
Watermelon – This is one of summer’s most thirst-quenching fruits, packed with water, vitamins and minerals – perfect for combating heat and dehydration. Watermelon is also rich in potassium: just think that two slices of this fruit provide 640 milligrams of potassium, or about 14% of the recommended daily requirement.