Who should use this potassium guide?

While this site is designed for people living with kidney disease, anyone can use this list to learn more about fruits, vegetables, servings sizes, and potassium!

For people with kidney disease on hemodialysis, you will probably want to use this guide to find lower potassium fruits and vegetables, and especially those that are high in fiber. Many dietitians will define a “low potassium” fruit or vegetable as one that has less than 200mg of potassium per serving.

For people with kidney disease on peritoneal dialysis, you will probably want to use this guide to find higher potassium fruits and vegetables.

A healthy adult should aim for 4,700mg of potassium, so they may find it helpful to also focus on higher potassium fruits and vegetables!

How can I show a list of low potassium fruits and vegetables?

Use the potassium filter to limit the foods listed to those with up to 200mg of potassium as shown below:

You can also use the other filters to further refine your results. You can choose to show only fruits or only vegetables. You can also sort by potassium level:

What is a serving size of fruits and vegetables?

You may have looked at the previous picture and been SHOCKED to see Watermelon show up as a low potassium fruit. The reason for that is the portion size. Typical servings sizes of fruits and vegetables are:

• Fresh or cooked fruits and vegetables: 1/2 cup serving size
• Raw Leafy greens: 1 cup serving size
• Dried fruits: 1 ounce

A half of a cup of water is a very small amount compared to the whole fruit! If you use the search bar of the guide to search for watermelon, you’ll see that we have two different listings for watermelon:

The half cup portion has only 67.5mg of potassium while the slice of watermelon is 148. If you were to eat a whole watermelon in one sitting, you can easily consume 4,000mg of potassium.

For all of these foods, we include both a standard kitchen measurement (e.g. 1/2 cup) as well as a gram measurement. Many people find it helpful to purchase a kitchen scale that can measure foods in grams so that they know they have the serving sizes correct. Here is a link to the exact scale that I use in my kitchen. It is also helpful to have a set of measuring cups and spoons on hand to become more familiar with serving sizes. Here is a link to a set of easy to read metal measuring cups and spoons.

Where does this information come from?

All of our nutrient information is based off of USDA FoodData Central. We use Esha Food Processor software to convert the USDA data into standardized measurements.

Why is the fiber content listed?

Fiber helps prevent constipation. People with kidney disease that are constipated may have a harder time controlling their potassium levels. For those patients on a potassium restriction, we encourage you to choose higher fiber, low potassium fruits and vegetables to help prevent constipation.

Is it possible to add more foods to the list?

Yes! If you think we missed a fruit or vegetable or you want to put in a request, please send us a message!