What is potassium?
Potassium is a mineral essential to maintain proper health. On the Periodic Table of the Elements, Potassium has the atomic number of 19 and atomic symbol of K. It was first isolated by Sir Humphry Davy in 1807. It is a soft metal that can easily be cut by a knife. Potassium is one of the most highly reactive metals and rarely used alone. However, combined with many other elements, such as sodium or chloride, it forms compounds which can be found in many common items such as glass, soap, and fertilizer. Potassium is probably best known as an important nutrient. It can be found in a variety of foods from bananas, apples, broccoli and peas, to whole grains, nuts, flounder, and salmon. Potassium, one of the main electrolytes, is an essential element in the basic, everyday workings of the body. It plays a role in muscle growth and contractions, nerve cell function, and protein synthesis. Along with another eloctrolyte, sodium, it also helps to to regulate the water balance in and outside o
