LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Potassium: Body
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Potassium-40 is of special interest to scientists. Potassium is widely distributed in nature in plants, animals, and rocks. That means that nearly everything on Earth contains at least a tiny amount of radioactive potassium-40. That includes the human body! About 0.012 percent of the potassium in the human body is radioactive potassium-40. However, that is not enough radiation to cause any harm.
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Potassium is a mineral that is found in most foods. You may have heard, for instance, that bananas contain high levels of potassium. Studies indicate that balanced levels of potassium in the body contribute significantly to muscle and heart health, and that potassium is good for both the nervous and digestive systems 1.
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Potassium is necessary for normal cell respiration; a deficiency can cause decreased levels of oxygen, which will reduce the efficiency of cell function. Adequate supplies of potassium are ... required to regulate heartbeat, facilitate normal muscle contraction, regulate the transfer of nutrients to cells, and regulate kidney function and stomach juice secretion, among other things. One of the most important uses of potassium in the body is in the process of nerve transmission, as it is a cofactor catalyst for the activation of several enzyme systems, but since only minute amounts are required for these processes, deficiency in this respect is unlikely.
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A shortage of Potassium in body fluids may cause a potentially fatal condition known as hypokalemia, typically resulting from diarrhea, increased diuresis and vomiting. Deficiency symptoms include muscle weakness, paralytic ileus, ECG abnormalities, decreased reflex response and (in severe cases) respiratory paralysis, alkalosis and arrhythmia.
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Stockpiling of Potassium Iodide (chemical abbreviation KI) is recommended by health officials worldwide to prevent thyroid cancer of those exposed to radioactive iodine in the event of a nuclear reactor accident or detonation of a nuclear bomb. Potassium Iodide protects against the harmful effects of radioactive iodine by preventing its absorption by the thyroid gland (located in the neck). Thyroid cells are unique among all cells of the human body as they are the only cells which have the ability to absorb iodine. FDA Approved IOSAT and ThyroShield potassium iodide saturates the thyroid with stable iodine, stopping the thyroid's absorption of any additional iodine (radioactive or not) long enough for the radioactive iodine inhaled or ingested to be safely dis
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Potassium is very important to organisms. It helps the body send messages from cells to other cells. It helps biological membranes depolarize. This means go from a negative to a positive electrical charge. This is needed for muscles to contract (get shorter and move things.) It is needed for the heart to beat (push blood through blood vessels.) If the potassium level in the blood is too high or too low it can cause death because the heart stops.
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