Studies have shown that potassium supplements may boost sleeping through the night, but good food sources are beans, leafy greens, avocados, baked potatoes, and to a lesser degree, bananas.
An imbalance of potassium can cause many different side effects including anxiety and new research suggests a potential for sleep disturbances.
Q: Is it better to take a potassium supplement in the morning or at night? A: You should take a potassium supplement in the morning so the body can use it throughout the day for its various functions, including muscle and heart health.
The lowdown
In particular, vitamins B6, B12, C, D, and E can improve or lower your sleep quality and duration. Vitamin C deficiency and both lack and an excess of vitamin B6 in the body might affect your sleep or cause insomnia.
When it comes to sleep, the symptoms of a potassium deficiency are thought to play an indirect role in causing problems such as insomnia or sleep disruptions. Muscle cramps are one symptom that can have a real impact which makes sense when you think of how potassium helps to stimulate muscle contractions.
Insomnia, the inability to get to sleep or sleep well at night, can be caused by stress, jet lag, a health condition, the medications you take, or even the amount of coffee you drink. Insomnia can also be caused by other sleep disorders or mood disorders such as anxiety and depression.
Magnesium administration, concomitant with potassium, assists tissue replenishment of potassium.
Potassium And Sleep
Magnesium has always been touted as the super mineral for sleep, but recent research suggests that its friend, potassium, may be just as beneficial—and this is why swapping your morning potassium supplement for the evening might be ideal.
Magnesium is perhaps the most important vitamin or mineral when it comes to sleep. It plays a key role in the bodily function that regulates sleep and studies have shown that sleep suffers without optimal vitamin intake.
You may be wondering, can you take magnesium and potassium together? Many people are not getting adequate amounts of magnesium or potassium in their diet. Therefore, taking magnesium and potassium together may benefit your heart health.
In some people, potassium can cause stomach upset, nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, or intestinal gas.
Reduces Anxiety and Stress: Ingesting potassium assists with regulating a variety of hormones in your body, including those produced as a result of stress such as cortisol and adrenaline. This helps to reduce the feelings of anxiousness and tension that you may be experiencing.
Always check the serum magnesium level and replete magnesium prior to repleting potassium. Low magnesium can exacerbate renal potassium losses.
By helping to quiet the nervous system, magnesium and potassium can help you fall asleep faster.
People who take ACE inhibitors, potassium-sparing diuretics, or a trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole antibiotic (Bactrim, Septra) should not take potassium.
A low potassium level can make muscles feel weak, cramp, twitch, or even become paralyzed, and abnormal heart rhythms may develop. The diagnosis is based on blood tests to measure the potassium level. Usually, eating foods rich in potassium or taking potassium supplements by mouth is all that is needed.
Can I take the test at home? You can take a potassium test at home, either with a blood or urine sample. If using a 24-hour urine test, you will need to collect your urine wherever you are during the day. For blood tests, you often need to visit a local laboratory to have your sample collected.
Low potassium (hypokalemia) has many causes. The most common cause is excessive potassium loss in urine due to prescription medications that increase urination. Also known as water pills or diuretics, these types of medications are often prescribed for people who have high blood pressure or heart disease.
Reasons this might happen include drinking caffeine or alcohol late in the day, a poor sleep environment, a sleep disorder, or another health condition. When you can't get back to sleep quickly, you won't get enough quality sleep to keep you refreshed and healthy.