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potassium in bananas?

I was told their is a lot of potassium in bananas but i hate the texture of bananas, but i like the hard banana chips. Is their the same amount of potassium in the hard chips that their is in the real bananas. Is potassium really good for your heart? What does it do?

Update:

I have mitral valve prolapse which causes my heart to beat fast and i'm looking for foods that are good for my heart. I was told potassium is good for my heart.

12 Answers

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  • 1 decade ago
    Favorite Answer

    Nutritional Benefits of Bananas :-

    Because of their impressive potassium content, bananas are highly recommended by doctors for patients whose potassium is low. One large banana, about 9 inches in length, packs 602 mg of potassium and only carries 140 calories. That same large banana even has 2 grams of protein and 4 grams of fiber. No wonder the banana was considered an important food to boost the health of malnourished children! Those reducing sodium in their diets can't go wrong with a banana with its mere 2 mgs of sodium. For the carbohydrate counters there are 36 grams of carbs in a large banana.

    Vitamins and minerals are abundant in the banana, offering 123 I.U. of vitamin A for the large size. A full range of B vitamins are present with .07 mg of Thiamine, .15 mg of Riboflavin, .82 mg Niacin, .88 mg vitamin B6, and 29 mcg of Folic Acid. There are even 13.8 mg of vitamin C. On the mineral scale Calcium counts in at 9.2 mg, Magnesium 44.1 mg, with trace amounts of iron and zinc.

    Putting all of the nutritional figures together clearly shows the banana is among the healthiest of fruits. The plantain, when cooked, rates slightly higher on the nutritional scale in vitamins and minerals but similar to the banana in protein and fiber content.

    Medicinal Uses of Bananas :-

    Anaemia: High in iron, bananas can stimulate the production of haemoglobin in the blood and so helps in cases of anaemia.

    Blood Pressure: This unique tropical fruit is extremely high in potassium yet low in salt, making it the perfect food for helping to beat blood pressure. So much so, the US Food and Drug Administration has just allowed the banana industry to make official claims for the fruit?s ability to reduce the risk of blood pressure and stroke.

    Brain Power: 200 students at an English school were helped through their exams this year by eating bananas at breakfast, break and lunch in a bid to boost their brain power. Research has shown that the potassium-packed fruit can assist learning by making pupils more alert.

    Constipation: High in fibre, including bananas in the diet can help restore normal bowel action, helping to overcome the problem without resorting to laxatives.

    Depression: According to a recent survey undertaken by MIND amongst people suffering from depression, many felt much better after eating a banana. This is because bananas contain tryptophan, a type of protein that the body converts into serotonin ? known to make you relax, improve your mood and generally make you feel happier.

    Hangovers: One of the quickest ways of curing a hangover is to make a banana milkshake, sweetened with honey. The banana calms the stomach and, with the help of the honey, builds up depleted blood sugar levels, while the milk soothes and re-hydrates your system.

    Heartburn: Bananas have a natural antacid effect in the body so if you suffer from heart-burn, try eating a banana for soothing relief.

    Morning Sickness: Snacking on bananas between meals helps to keep blood sugar levels up and avoid morning sickness.

    Mosquito bites: Before reaching for the insect bite cream, try rubbing the affected area with the inside of a banana skin. Many people find it amazingly successful at reducing swelling and irritation.

    Nerves: Bananas are high in B vitamins that help calm the nervous system.

    Overweight and at work? Studies at the Institute of Psychology in Austria found pressure at work leads to gorging on comfort food like chocolate and crisps. Looking at 5,000 hospital patients, researchers found the most obese were more likely to be in high-pressure jobs. The report concluded that, to avoid panic-induced food cravings, we need to control our blood sugar levels by snacking on high carbohydrate foods ? such as bananas ? every two hours to keep levels steady.

    PMS: Forget the pills ? eat a banana. The vitamin B6 it contains regulates blood glucose levels, which can affect your mood.

    Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD): Bananas can help SAD sufferers because they contain the natural mood enhancer, trypotophan.

    Smoking: Bananas can also help people trying to give up smoking, as the high levels of Vitamin C, A1, B6, B12 they contain, as well as the potassium and magnesium found in them, help the body recover from the effects of nicotine withdrawal.

    Stress: Potassium is a vital mineral, which helps normalise the heartbeat, sends oxygen to the brain and regulates your body?s water-balance. When we are stressed, our metabolic rate rises, thereby reducing our potassium levels. These can be re-balanced with the help of a high-potassium banana snack.

    Strokes: According to research in ?The New England Journal of Medicine? eating bananas as part of a regular diet can cut the risk of death by strokes by as much as 40%!

    Temperature control: Many other cultures see bananas as a ?cooling? fruit that can lower both the physical and emotional temperature of expectant mothers. In Thailand, for example, pregnant women eat bananas to ensure their baby is born with a cool temperature.

    Ulcers: The banana is used as the dietary food against intestinal disorders because of its soft texture and smoothness. It is the only raw fruit that can be eaten without distress in over-chronic ulcer cases. It also neutralises over-acidity and reduces irritation by coating the lining of the stomach.

    Warts: Those keen on natural alternatives swear that, if you want to kill off a wart, take a piece of banana skin and place it on the wart, with the yellow side out. Carefully hold the skin in place with a plaster or surgical tape!

    I hope and pray that provided information is helpful for you. For more information please click the link :- http://www.banana.com/

    Take Care and God Bless !

    Source(s): I am a Homeopathic Physician.
  • tapp
    Lv 4
    5 years ago

    Potassium In Banana Chips

  • 4 years ago

    1

    Source(s): Low Potassium Kidney Diet - http://kidneydiet.naturallygo.com/?PVo
  • 1 decade ago

    This question has many answers. First, dried banana chips have been processed and have had mounds of sugar put into them, so no, they aren't as good. But you can get potassium from several other things too. People usually have some type of deficiency to worry about potassium, so if you don't, it's nothing you need to go chasing after.

    Source(s): Nursing student
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  • 1 decade ago

    If you will not be able to get the minimum daily required amount from banana chips, take a magnesuim supplement, it's good for your heart, as it is a necessary nutrient for our muscles, and the heart is a muscle that never takes a holiday, so be good to it. Read the banana chips package, it will tell you how much, if any, potassium is still in there, I would imagine it wouldn't be much as it is now a processed food item, where a regular banana is not. Hope this helps.

  • 1 decade ago

    You definately want to check out the source link provided, because it offers basically all the information you would need on potassium and what it offers. As far as banana chips, you'd be better off eating a baked potatoe than banana chips, mainly because having all the moisture pulled out of the banana would cause it's potassium levels to shrink, considering potassium is water soluable, and would get pulled out with most of the moisture. You would still get some, but there are infinately better foods for you than banana chips, and more tasty. It is good for your heart, and can lower blood pressure. why? Not sure, but one thing's for sure, you probably want to stay away from sodium as much as possible. The link below says it way better than I can. Good luck with the search.

  • Potassium is an essential mineral macronutrient in human nutrition; it is the major cation (positive ion) inside animal cells, and it is thus important in maintaining fluid and electrolyte balance in the body.

    A shortage of potassium in body fluids may cause a potentially fatal condition known as hypokalemia typically resulting from diarrhea, increased diuresis and vomiting. Deficiency symptoms include muscle weakness, paralytic ileus, ECG abnormalities, decreased reflex response and (in severe cases) respiratory paralysis, alkalosis and arrhythmia.

    Foods with high sources of potassium include orange juice, potatoes, bananas, avocados, apricots, parsnips and turnips, although many other fruits, vegetables, and meats contain potassium. Research has indicated that diets high in potassium can reduce the risk of hypertension.

  • ncgirl
    Lv 6
    1 decade ago

    potassium has something to do with muscles, if we dont have it we get cramps. Im sure a lot of natural potassium is lost in processing of chips. Another good potassium replacement is dark grapes.

  • Anonymous
    5 years ago

    No, if you stuffed yourself with bananas day and night you might do yourself harm, but it wouldn't be from potassium overdose. For one thing, you woudl get a raging diarrhea, and diarrhea drains potassium from the body. Remember monkeys eat bananas all the time and their bodies are not very different from ours. There is no where even close to enough potassium in bananas to allow one to overdose. However, like I said, if you could hold them down (unlikely) and you really stuffed yourself with them day and night, you could do other bad things to your body, and sure, you could kill yourself.

  • 1 decade ago

    banana chips are real bananas, just dehydrated. It has just as much potassium as a hydrated banana. Bananas are really good for your heart because potassium is good for your heart.

  • 1 decade ago

    yes banana has a lot of potassium which is good 4 our heart muscle away from cramping.hard banana chips r made of flour,sugar n some banana.it's not pure banana.

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