Potassium

["Barbara B. Peck" <bpeck@together.net>]

I think people are talking about 3 different things here..

 

1) Renal failure and one of it's consequenses

2) dietary potassium levels

3) The potassium in E lytes which replaces the potassium

    lost from sweating (the form of which may be a salt)

   

Susan is stating the medical fact that an animal with renal failure

 (kidney failure, due to what ever

reason) will have decreased elimination of potassium

 and increased serum levels.

Failure to eliminate  potassium is a symptom of kidney failure

in horses and humans.

 

There is more than 1 form of potassium, just as there is more than

1 form of many of the other elements.

 

Art is making the point, that in and of itself, the

oral administration of potassium  in Elytes

cannot CAUSE kidney failure in a healthy animal.

 

He's also saying that a horse can tolerate a high *dietary* potassium level.

(I think it's around 3% but would have to look it up).

Absorption is thru the intestine, and elimination is thru the kidney's in a healthy

horse (or human)

You'd have to over administrate potassium by IV to overdose them (and it could be

done, but I don't know the lethal dose off-hand)

 

Kat's question is about potassium chloride (the salt form ) being in balance with sodium chloride:

 

Sodium, Chloride, and potassium  do have a relationship (ratio) and also have a relationship

with minerals.

And while a horse USUALLY eats way more potassium in their forage than its body needs,

dehydration (from sweating and hard work) is the first step in disrupting the

sodium/potassium /chloride balance . Repeated bouts of sustained

exercise, without adequate time for the body to "catch-up" thru diet, can cause

a baseline deficiet, which will upset the proper ratios.

 

This is over-simplified..but without getting into the role potassium plays in it's shared role

of fluid balances in the body and of the absorption of other elements....

which would be a long post..

this  might clarify a little.

 

Barb