POTASSIUM
In societies in which there is a low prevalence of hypertension and its complications as well as little age-related increase in blood pressure, people tend to consume increased amounts of potassium (and calcium, as discussed in the next section) and follow a reduced salt diet. Fewer studies have examined the relationship between potassium and blood pressure than those involving sodium. However, the findings regarding potassium tend to be consistent. In general, the effect of potassium is smaller than that of sodium based on interventional trials. Again, heterogeneity in responsiveness of blood pressure to alterations in potassium intake or balance has been demonstrated. Among potassium-replete normotensive subjects, typically those consuming 60 mmolld of potassium or more, little effect on blood pressure can be demonstrated with additional potassium administration.
However, in hypertensive populations, particularly those comprising substantial numbers of individuals in whom dietary potassium intake is traditionally deficient (the elderly, AfricanAmericans) or those in whom diuretic-induced potassium loss occurs, potassium supplementation has been shown to lower blood pressure. It has also been observed that
