Thanksgiving Low Potassium Foods

Thanksgiving is loaded with high potassium foods, making it a problem for those on a low potassium diet. You can eat some of the low potassium foods mentioned in prior posts, but most are not traditional Thanksgiving foods. All poultry is a high potassium food, as are spices, which are so common this time of year. Low sodium breads, baked goods, pasta and rice are good choices, but not the usual Thanksgiving fare.

Food Choices

The best choice is to eat the least spicy foods available, and take small portions. Poultry is high in potassium, but low in sodium unless the meat is injected with salt solution or basted or marinated in a high sodium liquid. Eating a small piece can keep potassium load down.

Cranberries are low in potassium and sodium, having just 85 mg of potassium and 2 mg of sodium in 3.5 oz of berries. Of course, mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes are high in potassium and should be avoided. Yellow snap beans, if frozen without salt, are low in both minerals. By boiling without salt and then draining the liquid, just 126 mg of potassium and 9 mg of sodium will be in 3.5 oz of beans.

Breads, rolls and muffins are usually high in sodium because of the baking soda used in baking. If the low sodium type is used, they should be alright. Most pie crusts are high in sodium for the same reason. The Nabisco ready to use crust in the table is an exception.

In the table we featured pies. Most are high in sodium because of the crust having been made with baking soda. However, the coconut cream and chocolate cream pies are fairly low in both sodium and potassium. If a slightly smaller piece than indicated is eaten, you can limit potassium and sodium to less than 100 mg in a piece, especially if you avoid the crust.

Thanksgiving is a time with many foods that can create havoc with a potassium restricted diet. Just watch your potassium and sodium, and enjoy the holiday.

The Table

The serving weight is in grams, and the potassium and sodium weights are in milligrams. The potassium and sodium values given are for 100 grams of food.

As usual, K is potassium, and Na is sodium.

Except for the potassium to sodium ratio, amount of potassium per serving, and sodium per serving (all of which we calculated), the source of data is: USDA National Nutrient Database Standard Reference – Release 22.

Food K Na Ratio K:Na Serving Wt Serving Size K per Serving Na per Serving
Pie, apple, commercially prepared, enriched flour 65 266 0.24 125 1 piece, (1/8 of 9″ dia) 81 333
Pie, apple, prepared from recipe 79 211 0.37 155 1 piece, (1/8 of 9″ dia) 122 327
Pie, banana cream, prepared from mix, no-bake
type
113 290 0.39 92 1 piece, (1/8 of 9″ dia) 104 267
Pie, banana cream, prepared from recipe 165 240 0.69 148 1 piece, (1/8 of 9″ dia) 244 355
Pie, blueberry, commercially prepared 50 325 0.15 125 1 piece, (1/8 of 9″ dia) 63 406
Pie, blueberry, prepared from recipe 50 185 0.27 147 1 piece, (1/8 of 9″ dia) 74 272
Pie, cherry, commercially prepared 81 246 0.33 125 1 piece, (1/8 of 9″ dia) 101 308
Pie, cherry, prepared from recipe 77 191 0.4 180 1 piece, (1/8 of 9″ dia) 139 344
Pie, chocolate creme, commercially prepared 127 136 0.93 99 1 piece, (1/4 of 6″ pie) 126 135
Pie, chocolate mousse, prepared from mix,
no-bake type
285 460 0.62 95 1 piece, (1/8 of 9″ dia) 271 437
Pie, coconut creme, commercially prepared 65 255 0.25 64 1 piece, (1/6 of 7″ pie) 42 163
Pie, coconut cream, prepared from mix, no-bake
type
141 329 0.43 94 1 piece, (1/8 of 9″ dia) 133 309
Pie, coconut custard, commercially prepared 175 335 0.52 104 1 piece, (1/6 of 8″ pie) 182 348
Pie, egg custard, commercially prepared 106 240 0.44 105 1 piece, (1/6 of 8″ pie) 111 252
Pie, lemon meringue, commercially prepared 89 146 0.61 113 1 piece, (1/6 of 8″ pie) 101 165
Pie, lemon meringue, prepared from recipe 65 242 0.27 127 1 piece, (1/8 of 9″ dia) 83 307
Pie, mince, prepared from recipe 203 254 0.8 165 1 piece, (1/8 of 9″ dia) 335 419
Pie, peach 125 270 0.46 117 1 piece, (1/6 of 8″ pie) 146 316
Pie, pecan, commercially prepared 99 240 0.41 132.71 1 slice 131 319
Pie, pecan, prepared from recipe 133 262 0.51 122 1 piece, (1/8 of 9″ dia) 162 320
Pie, pumpkin, commercially prepared 167 233 0.72 132.7 1 slice 222 309
Pie, pumpkin, prepared from recipe 186 225 0.83 155 1 piece, (1/8 of 9″ dia) 288 349
Pie, vanilla cream, prepared from recipe 126 260 0.48 126 1 piece, (1/8 of 9″ dia) 159 328
Pie crust, standard-type, dry mix 64 753 0.08 284 1 package, (10 oz) 182 2139
Pie crust, standard-type, dry mix, prepared,
baked
62 729 0.09 20 1 piece, (1/8 of 9″ crust) 12 146
Pie, apple, commercially prepared, unenriched
flour
65 266 0.24 125 1 piece, (1/8 of 9″ dia) 81 333
Pie, fried pies, cherry 65 374 0.17 128 1 pie, (5″ x 3-3/4″) 83 479
Pie, fried pies, lemon 65 374 0.17 128 1 pie, (5″ x 3-3/4″) 83 479
NABISCO, NABISCO NILLA Pie Crust, ready to use 69 224 0.31 28 1 serving 19 63

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