Potassium – A guide to lowering the potassium in your diet

• Beef, lamb, pork, chicken, turkey, fish can be eaten (fresh or frozen). If previously advised, please follow advice regarding daily protein allowance
• Please note that cured or salted meats and fish are high in salt

• Can be eaten

• For example Quorn and tofu can be eaten

• These are allowed but as an alternative to meat. Avoid having meat or fish and lentils or pulses at the same meal. If you use these in your cooking please discuss this further with your dietitian
• Boiling lentils or pulses separately before using will reduce their potassium content
• Canned pulses and lentils are lower in potassium

• These foods are high in potassium. If you use small amounts in your cooking please discuss this further with your dietitian. To include these foods as a snack refer to the fruit, nut and seed list
  If you are vegetarian or vegan please inform your dietitian and further advice can be given

• Up to ………… ml of milk per day. This can be any type of fresh, UHT milk
• Up to ………… ml soya milk or other plant based milk (e.g oat, rice) per day
• Milk powder can be used as an alternative to milk, when following the manufacturers guidelines
• Avoid Coffee Mate. You can use Coffee Compliment
• Avoid all tinned milk (condensed or evaporated)
• Avoid coconut milk

• You can include …….. 125 g carton each week

• Fresh cream can be used in small amounts
• Double cream and water can be used as a substitute for milk

• All types can be taken in small amounts
• Watch out for salt substitutes in the ingredients

• Limit milk puddings to twice per week
• Ice-cream can be eaten

• Fats such as margarine, butter, ghee, suet, dripping can be used in small amounts
• We recommend the use of monounsaturated fats in small amounts e.g. olive oil, rapeseed oil and olive-based spreads

All types e.g. wholemeal, white, granary, soda bread, pitta breads, bagels, croissants and English muffins

Chapatis, plain naan, paratha, corn or tortilla wraps, crumpets, pikelets, scotch pancakes, Yorkshire puddings, dumplings, cream crackers and crispbreads, cous cous, pasta, rice, noodles and pittas

Porridge made with water or milk from allowance, cornflakes, Rice Krispies, Cheerios, Sugar Puffs, Weetabix, Shredded Wheat, Shreddies, Frosties, Special K, Honey Smacks, Crunchy Nut Cornflakes, Puffed Wheat and Grape Nuts

Popadoms

Avoid bread containing nuts, dried fruit, sweet potato and coconut

Parathas filled with potato
Tinned spaghetti in tomato sauce and tinned ravioli in tomato sauce

Breakfast cereals containing nuts or dried fruit e.g. muesli, Fruit and Fibre, Weetabix Minis, Sultana Bran, All Bran, Jordans Crunch and Branflakes

If you need to add flour to thicken sauces try corn flour, plain flour or rice flour

Lentil, chickpea (besan) and soya flours are high in potassium

• 4 slices cucumber
• 10 g mustard and cress
• 35 g gherkin
• 3 – 4 small pickled onions
• 2 rings green or red pepper
• 2 radishes
• 3 leaves of lettuce
• 2 spring onions
• 4 slices of pickled beetroot
• A bunch of watercress

Plus one small tomato.

• 1 medium apple
• 1 medium pear
• 2 medium clementine
• 2 small tangerines
• 5 slices fresh lemon
• 2 small satsumas
• 1 small orange
• 5 passion fruit
• 1 medium peach
• 1 slice fresh pineapple
• 9 fresh strawberries
• 25 fresh raspberries
• 1 medium slice watermelon
• 20 blackberries
• 12 raw cherries
• 1 small guava
• 1 small Sharon fruit
• 15 grapes
• 1 medium kiwi fruit
• 1 small nectarine
• 2 small plums
• 150 g punnet of blueberries

• 7 slices tinned peaches
• 4 halves tinned pears

4 tablespoons of:

• fruit cocktail
• fruit pie filling
• mandarins
• plums
• strawberries
• lychees
• mango

3 tablespoons of:

• gooseberries
• guavas
• papaya
• rhubarb

Stewed fruit

4 tablespoons of:

• apple
• blackberries
• gooseberries

3 tablespoons of:

• plums
• rhubarb

• 300 ml unsweetened pineapple juice
• 300 ml unsweetened grape juice
• 200 ml unsweetened cranberry juice
• 150 ml apple juice
• 100 ml orange juice
• 80 ml pomegranate juice
• 80 ml passion fruit juice
• 80 ml tomato juice

Avoid ready-made fruit smoothies

• 1 small apricot
• ½ small banana
• 2 small slices of mango
• ½ naseberry (sapodilla)
• ¼ avocado
• ½ slice papaya
• 1 small slice galia melon (100 g)
• 1 medium slice cantaloupe or honeydew melon (75 g)
• 1 dried apricot
• 2 raw dates
• 1 dried date
• 1 small dried fig
• 1½ tbsp canned prunes
• 1 tsp raisins

• 10 almonds
• 7 brazil nuts
• 20 cashew nuts
• 3 chestnuts
• 20 g peanut butter
• 1 tbsp sunflower seeds
• 1 tbsp tahini
• 20 g hazelnuts
• 18 macadamia nuts
• 20 peanuts
• 5 pecan nuts
• 15 pistachio nuts
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds
• 6 walnut halves

Please avoid starfruit

Cakes

Sponge cakes, including lemon drizzle cake, lemon curd finger rolls, fairy cakes, Victoria sponge (with cream, jam and buttercream fillings), Madeira cake, bulla, battenburg, treacle tart, jam tarts, jam swiss roll, doughnuts, plain scones, Danish pastries (with no dried fruit or nuts) and plain rusks

Biscuits

Plain e.g. rich tea, digestive, HobNob
Cream filled: custard creams, jammy dodgers, shortbread and sponge fingers

Puddings

Pavlova, sponge pudding (syrup or strawberry jam), lemon meringue pie, corn pudding, apple or plum crumble, apple pie or tinned fruit and cream

Sweets and chocolate

Boiled sweets, wine gums, mints, chewing gum and marshmallows

Savoury snacks

Remember these are high in salt
Tortillas, Tuc, Ritz, Krackerwheat, popcorn, plain breadsticks and pretzels

Maize and wheat based crisps are lower potassium options. However, it is important to read the products ingredients list to ensure the product does not contain potassium chloride

Cakes

Cakes containing dried fruit, nuts, chocolate, marzipan and coconut

Cassava pone and coconut ice (Sugar Cake)

Biscuits

Biscuits with chocolate, nuts, dried fruit and coconut

Puddings

Sweet potato pudding

Remember to include stewed fruit or tinned fruit within your fruit allowance

Sweets and chocolate

Chocolate (suitable options are listed on page 18), toffee and fudge, liquorice, fruit gums and Carob

Savoury snacks

Potato based snacks; potato crisps, Quavers, Bombay mix, Sev, Twiglets ‘Flaming hot’ Monster Munch and Frazzles

Tomato salsa and guacamole

Soft drinks

Fruit squashes, lemonade, 7-Up, Sprite, Tango. Mixers such as soda water, tonic water, bitter lemon, dry ginger

Alcohol

Dry white wine, sparkling wine, lager, bitter (mild), gin, brandy, vodka, whisky, rum, Baileys and Vermouth, Try to keep your alcohol intake to within the recommended limits

Hot beverages

Tea, fruit teas, green tea
Limit to 1 cup of coffee a day,
Camp coffee and Chai (made with milk from daily allowance)

Nutritional supplements

Appropriate supplements will be prescribed if required

Soft drinks

To include fruit juice see fruit portion information (page 15).
High Juice squash, blackcurrant squash and coconut containing drinks

Alcohol

Stout, strong ale, cider, barley wine, liqueurs, red wine, sweet white wine, sweet sherry and alcopops

Hot beverages

Horlicks, Ovaltine, Bournvita, cocoa, drinking chocolate, Bovril and Oxo

Nutritional supplements

Nourishment, Nutriment, Complan and Build Up

• Bay leaf
• Black pepper
• Cardamom (ground)
• Cinnamon (ground)
• Cloves (dried)
• Coriander leaves (fresh)
• Fenugreek seeds
• Garlic (fresh)
• Ginger (fresh / dried)
• Green chilli
• Lemon
• Mint (fresh)
• Mustard seeds
• Nutmeg (ground)
• Rose water
• Saffron
• Tamarind pulp
• Vinegar
• White pepper

• Anise seeds
• Cayenne pepper
• Cumin seeds
• Curry powder
• Garam masala
• Garlic powder
• Mint (dried)
• Parsley (fresh)
• Poppy seeds
• Red chilli

• Amchoor powder
• Chilli powder
• Coconut powder
• Coriander powder
• Fennel seeds
• Groundnuts
• Molasses
• Paprika
• Parsley (dried)
• Turmeric powder

Sugar and artificial sweeteners
Jam, marmalade, honey, fruit spread, golden syrup and lemon curd

Vinegar, tomato sauce, brown sauce, mayonnaise, salad cream, tartar sauce, horseradish sauce, soy sauce, mustard and piccalilli

* Use these sparingly as they are high in salt
Pickles and chutneys are often high in potassium therefore use sparingly e.g. 1 teaspoon

Homemade soup (recipes are available from the dietitian)

Black treacle, chocolate spread, peanut butter and marmite

Tomato puree

Avoid salt substitutes e.g. LoSalt and supermarket own brands

Tinned and packet soups should be avoided as they are high in salt