Potassium

What is potassium used for?

Updated 9 Nov 2026

Short answer

Potassium supplements are most studied for blood pressure, and potassium citrate for kidney stones. What the best reviews found:

  • Blood pressure. In a 2017 review of 25 trials in 1,163 people with high blood pressure, supplements lowered systolic pressure by 4.48 mmHg and diastolic pressure by 2.96 mmHg.[1][2] A 2013 review saw the effect in people with high blood pressure, but not in people without it.[3]
  • Salt substitutes. In a 2022 Cochrane review of 26 trials, salt substitutes with less sodium, most of them with potassium, probably lowered systolic pressure by 4.76 mmHg and cardiovascular deaths slightly.[4]
  • Stroke. In cohort studies, which follow people for years, a higher potassium intake went with a 24% lower risk of stroke.[3]
  • Kidney stones. In people who already had calcium stones, citrate salts cut the risk of new kidney stones to about a quarter (risk ratio 0.26) in a 2015 Cochrane review of 7 trials.[5] The citrate, not the potassium, is thought to prevent the stones.[2]
  • Bones. In a 2015 review of 14 studies, potassium citrate and bicarbonate lowered calcium loss in urine and a marker of bone breakdown, but did not change bone density.[6]

Blood sugar has not been tested well in trials yet.[2] A 2026 review found higher, not lower, blood potassium after a race in people with exercise cramps.[7]

Sources (7)

  1. The effect of potassium supplementation on blood pressure in hypertensive subjects: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Filippini T, Violi F, D'Amico R, Vinceti M Int J Cardiol, 2017. PMID 28024910
  2. Potassium: Fact Sheet for Health Professionals. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements. ods.od.nih.gov
  3. Effect of increased potassium intake on cardiovascular risk factors and disease: systematic review and meta-analyses. Aburto NJ, Hanson S, Gutierrez H, Hooper L, Elliott P, Cappuccio FP BMJ, 2013. PMID 23558164
  4. Replacing salt with low-sodium salt substitutes (LSSS) for cardiovascular health in adults, children and pregnant women. Brand A, Visser ME, Schoonees A, Naude CE Cochrane Database Syst Rev, 2022. PMID 35944931
  5. Citrate salts for preventing and treating calcium containing kidney stones in adults. Phillips R, Hanchanale VS, Myatt A, Somani B, Nabi G, Biyani CS Cochrane Database Syst Rev, 2015. PMID 26439475
  6. The effect of supplementation with alkaline potassium salts on bone metabolism: a meta-analysis. Lambert H, Frassetto L, Moore JB, Torgerson D, Gannon R, Burckhardt P, et al. Osteoporos Int, 2015. PMID 25572045
  7. Risk Factors for Exercise-Associated Muscle Cramps: A Systematic Review With Meta-Analysis. Costa LDS, Correa VAF, de Oliveira VF, Jahn AJS, Aliano GB, Nunes GS Muscle Nerve, 2026. PMID 42693659

More about potassium

What is potassium?Which foods contain potassium?What happens if you do not get enough potassium?Is potassium safe?Why do potassium supplements contain only 99 mg?Does potassium lower blood pressure?

For education; not medical advice. Talk to a doctor before you start, stop or change a supplement.