I have been LCing since Jan 7/03

For about 10 days now I have had swelling in my knees and feet
so thats just about 2 weeks into the LCing,I felt great for a while and then I have had problems again with fatigue and cramping and swelling in my legs and feet. Just wanted to let you that this is a description of Hypokalemia which is low blood potassium.

I have been able to solve it by adding liquid K potassium and morton's no salt. I have some swelling back again this morning because I didn't add enough potassium yesterday. I am having to add about 1000 mg of potassium a day to keep it under control..

Debbie

Yep, insufficient potassium intake is fairly common when LCing. It's one of the reasons we urge people who haven't read a book to DO SO. It's vital to your health that you do ALL parts of the program - suppliments, exercise, etc - and not just ditching carb foods.

Have a good weekend!

Yup I have read all of them and have been taking supplements for about 3 years because of fibro. Even the potassium I was taking wasn't enough.........

I have ditched the carbs. , drink more water, take supplements, exercise daily (now that I can walk again) Keep a journal to keep track of what I am doing.

Happy to say that with 750 mg of potassium so far today the swelling is going back down again. Just thought I would mention it to those of us with Fibromyalgia who are already a bit low in potassium levels..

Debbie

FYI, pistachios are positively LOADED with potassium....

Check it out:

http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/cgi-bin/list_nut.pl

I've found they have virtually no effect on my BG levels...

Don't remember ever eating them but I can try it out.
Thanks ,Debbie

Potassium is everywhere!

California Avocados
Potassium: 1,096.82 mg
Tuna, White, Water Packed, Tin - Potassium 407.640 mg
Raw Spinach, 1 1/2 oz. - 130.000 mg
Broccoli 2 cups, chopped - 650 mg
Sockeye salmon, 1 can - 1,391 mg

=======================================

Eat up!

Karen

Many foods you eat have potassium - unfortunately not all labels are required to let you know how much is included. I take 396 mgs extra daily and have not had leg cramps or problems with swellling -- I also eat lots of greens and meat which have potassium.

I am eating tons of spinach raw YUMMMMM and lots of meat and had tuna at lunch today but I am finding because I have fibromyalgia that I have to supplement between 600 and 1000 a day to get relief from the cramps. I was awake about three times from 2 am because of severe leg cramps even though I took 600 Mg of potassium yesterday........ I have to keep it up around 1000 to even start to see some relief. I am hoping over time it will get better but it has been pretty bad for a couple of weeks now. This isn't new though .I have had this problem for 5 years now. The potassium does seem to make the difference. I am actually glad I am having the problem increase during LCing because I have had it for so long now and this just helps me to know what I can take to make the cramps go away........
Thanks for the food suggestions cause I would rather eat it then take supplements. Thats why I had the whole can of tuna for lunch today......... I guess it has 407 so I am up to 600 for the day so far........ Debbie.

puppetlady,
How much magnesium are you taking? It might be more magnesium you need than potassium. I too have fibro and had the cramping, but what my doc told me was I was magnesium deficient. I had to take 2200mg/day of magnesium for about 6 weeks before my deficiency began to come around. Today I still take a lot of magnesium, 600 to 1200 mg a day. I take it according to what my bowels will tolerate. That's actually a good way to figure it out. My doc told me to take it until it gave me the 'squirts' (her words, not mine <g>) and then back off about 200mg. That's how we figured out my initial dose of 2200mg. Magnesium is very safe to take even in high doses, so give it a try. (I like the Nature's Way elemental magnesium the best, and I've tried a lot of different brands)

Morning KJ,

Thank you for your suggestion I was just reading one of my supplement books and getting ready to order both magnesium and potassium.....I figured out with my husband that when I started induction I was eating scrambled eggs and bacon every morning and I never add salt to my food so I think that added sodium in all that bacon gave me the potassium drop. I haven't recovered yet and am almost in tears here. Ready to give up again until I can get this pain under control again. I have been having leg cramps again for weeks and awake with them the last two mornings around 2. I am getting really fatigued from not being able to sleep well. I have been taking coral calcium but I haven't been taking magnesium and potassium with it. I am taking a magnesium/calcium supplement but I can only take 1 tablet before it gives me the "squirts" as your doc says. I am wondering if this means it is being absorbed because there is only 100 mg in each tablet. There is no way I could get up to 2200 with this brand I am taking........ I know you have to take cal mag potassium all together for them to work the best so I take the liquid potassium and the cal/mag supplement.

Anyway I am getting pretty discouraged because I have had fatigue and pain for 17 years and got that pretty well under control but since I have started LCing I am getting pretty bad again. Any ideas would be appreciated as I have lost 14 pounds and I really am happy with the way I feel other then the cramps getting to be unbearable....... Thanks again,Debbie

Try a different *kind* of magnesium. Some kinds of magnesium cause that problem in me. I finally stumbled on a brand with 5 different kinds of magnesium and I can tolerate much higher doses of it. I know for a fact that magnesium citrate will cause the 'squirts' at much lower doses. Try magnesium malate--that is usually shown to be very beneficial to fibro sufferers. I take one that provides an effective dose of 825mg of malic acid once a day for 5 days only. I never take supplements 7 days in a row. Here's a quote from a health newsletter that I think may help you decide if you need more magnesium:

"Magnesium: An astounding 75% of the population is deficient in magnesium. Signs you may be lacking magnesium are: headaches, muscle spasms and tremors, menstrual cramps, kidney stones, heart problems (especially irregular heartbeat), and stroke. The way our bodies use magnesium is a perfect example of the way Nature establishes balance in our bodies. In fact, magnesium is Nature’s Calcium Channel Blocker. Calcium channel blocker drugs work to lower blood pressure by blocking the entry of calcium into heart cells and smooth muscle cells of blood vessels. Magnesium has protective features that balance out the negative effects of calcium overload on the heart. It blocks the entry of calcium into heart cells and vascular smooth muscle cells, reducing vascular resistance and naturally lowering blood pressure. Both minerals need to be present for the body to absorb them properly. The top food sources of magnesium to add to your diet are organic dark greens, alfalfa, sea greens (especially kelp), sea foods, wheat germ, nuts and seeds, and beans."

The magnesium formula I take is Nature's Plus and has magnesium in aspartate, citrate, aminoate, lysinate, methionate forms. I have very little trouble with my bowels while taking it, even in higher doses. I then also take the magnesium malate, so all together I get about 1075mg of magnesium/day, unless I feel I need more, for whatever reason, then I'll take another 250-500 mg of the Nature's Plus.

Good Morning KJ,
I am happy to say that the leg cramps are GONE!!!!!!!
slept through the night. I took 1400 Mg of liquid potassium yesterday and that got rid of it ! But thanks so much for the Magnesium info because I need to find a different form and it is always great to have feedback of different supplements since I have tried a lot and it can get time and money consuming to find one that works well. I have used Source Naturals -Fibro Response in the past and might check that out as well as it is a comprehensive formula that works well for Fibromyalgia. Iam finding though that I need to seperate the supplements so I can adjust doses when needed . Like the Potassium......WoW that was quite a flare but I am better this morning. This was the best sleep I had in two weeks. NO cramps at all .MY legs are a little wiped out from all the weeks of pain and cramps but I am sure they will recover quickly. It is so great to have the hypoglycemia under control which gives me so much more energy......Thanks again bye for now Debbie