This scribbler has become obsessed with the amount of various nutrients in healthy foods that can be harmful to health.
The obsession stems from kidney and heart disease diets which require little or no salt, low potassium and low phosphorus intake.
Recommended daily salt intake varies from 3,400 milligrams for young people to 2,300 for older folks. My diet: 1,500
One-half teaspoon is 1,115 mg of salt.
Phosphorus content is rarely put on food labels but the more processed the food is the higher the phosphorus content.
Potassium is critical to regulate the heartbeat and send electric messages to muscles and nerves.
Too much is dangerous and too little can kill you.
The rest of this column is about potassium levels in popular foods, measured in 100-gram (3.5-ounce) servings
Vegetables and fruits are healthy but all contain varying amounts of potassium.
Root crops are among the highest in potassium with carrots at 320mg, beets,325; parsnips, 375; turnips, 191.
Peas have 244 mg. Pinto beans have 405. A small ear of corn has 269.
Broccoli at 316 outranks cauliflower at 289. Spinach has a whopping 636.
The tomato has 287 units per 3.5 ounces, while cabbage has a mere 170.
Pumpkin weighs in at 342, squash at 261.
Among fruits, banana has 358, cantaloupe 26; kiwi 312; apples 107, oranges 181; and watermelon 112
Like all berries, strawberries are low at 153 mg.
Meat is high in potassium with beef and pork higher than poultry.
A three-ounce steak contains 305 mg while ground beef has 218 mg.
Beef sausage has only 161 mg but is loaded with 1,126 mg of salt.
Pork ribs have 319 mg with pork cutlets at 326.
Chicken breasts have 255 with 224 in dark meat. Turkey has 239 mg. Salmon has 363 mg.
Spam has only 70 mg potassium but 790 mg of salt .
Among gourds, pumpkin has 342 mg of potassium with 261 in squash.
Milk has 159 mg and sour cream has 141.
The sMy diet has a lot of berries and apples.
Ron Walter can be reached at ronjoy@sasktel.net.
The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the position of this publication.
