Psyllium Husk, Potassium and Water

Unsweetened psyllium generally *lowers* blood glucose. If you're taking sugar-sweetened Metamucil it could more than counteract that, though. Alternatives include artificially sweetened Metamucil or Unsweetened (original) Konsyl.

You would need very little additional water to make up for any abssorbed by the psyllium. We all must drink plenty of water, whether or not we take psyllium.

The potassium surprises me. Perhaps it's caused by something other than the psyllium? If you're taking any meds at the same time as psyllium it's best to separate them.

I also take Metamucil and I had an increase in my levels of potassium. I thought there might be a correlation also. I was eating a fair amount of bananas at the time. Since bananas also bulk up my output I try and stagger taking Metamucil and bananas. Next time I have blood work I will be curious to see if the numbers have changed.

Bananas can definitely increase blood potassium if you overdo it.

While bananas are a good source of dietary potassium, I have never heard of eating so many that it causes hyperkalemia (high serum potassium). Metamucil should not be a problem. The kidneys are exceptional at managing these types of electrolytes. If this is a one time thing, I would suspect it was lab error from hemolyzed (broken) blood cells in the sample. There is more potassium in the cells than the serum. Rather than making yourself crazy trying to alter your diet, repeat the test. 

If this turns out to be real, your most likely culprit is blood pressure medications or kidney disease. I suspect it was not seriously high or your doctor would be actively managing this, as a very high potassium level can cause cardiac arrythmias and arrest.

http://www.mayoclinic.org/symp.../causes/sym-20050776

Jan

While I have (once) seen high potassium from banana abuse, I certainly agree with Jan that a damaged blood sample or a medication side effect are more likely causes for the result. Metamucil just isn't a suspect.

Yeah, I have seen one report, but this was truly a crazy amount of bananas and this person was eating nothing else, not drinking hardly any fluids and had an eating disorder.

Jan

The potassium was 5.2 and wasn't that elevated.  But because my fasting glucose was 106 and the potassium elevation too, I thought I'd better ask around.  My blood levels have always been good.  However, it wasn't high enough for any concerns but I need to keep my eye on it.  

Thanks for the input.