LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Potassium: Sodium
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Potassium (K) in the form of K+ is the most essential cation (a positively charged ion) of the cells. Its high intracellular concentration is regulated by the cell membrane through the sodium-potassium pump. Most of the total body potassium is found in muscle tissue. Total body potassium has been used as a measure of lean body mass, of muscle mass, or (more accurately) of cell mass. Because of its association with the metabolizing, oxygen-consuming portion of the body, a decline in total body potassium is usually interpreted as a loss of muscle mass due to a catabolic condition. Potassium exists in nature in three isotopes: 39K (93.26%), 40K (0.0117%) and 41K (6.73%). 40K is radioactive and responsible for most of the naturally occurring internal radioactivity in the body.
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Potassium itself is a mineral. In an attempt to simplify a seriously complex explanation, Potassium resides on the inside of your cells, while Sodium resides in the fluid surrounding each cell. When proper levels of each are in place, your body works in optimal fashion. Keeping the two balanced, Potassium and Sodium both in check, ensures both your nerves and muscles function properly. Logically, one might think if you were depleted of Potassium, you should simply change your diet. Just because you are eating potassium rich foods that are healthy, does not conclude you are on the right path, at all.
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Potassium is one of the electrolytes essential to the smooth running of the human body; in fact just about all bodily functions depend on it to some extent. It is ... one of the most abundant minerals in the body, constituting 70% of the positive ions inside cells; the rest are a mixture of sodium, magnesium, calcium, arginine, and others. Potassium is distributed to the cells by a process of passive diffusion and is regulated by an enzyme called adenosinetriphosphatase together with the level of sodium concentration inside the cell. Potassium and sodium are antagonistic, which means that an imbalance of one will automatically cause an imbalance of the other; normally potassium should predominate inside the cell.
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Potassium is a crucial mineral, the seventh most common element on the planet. For a long time, it was not recognized as a distinct element from sodium. It was first isolated by Sir Humphrey Davy in 1807, who named it after pot ash (plant ash), his source of the mineral. Chemically it is a light, highly reactive alkaline metal, known to scientists by the symbol K (from the Latin word kalium, which means “alkali,” and is derived from the Arabic al qaliy, or "from the ashes").
Potassium is a chemical element in the periodic table. It has the symbol K. This is from the Latin word [K]alium. Potassium's atomic number is 19. Its melting point is 63 degrees celsius. It is an alkali metal. It acts in many chemical reactions like sodium.
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Potassium is one of the alkali metals. The alkali metals are the elements that make up Group 1 (IA) of the periodic table. The periodic table is a chart that shows how chemical elements are related to one another. The alkali metals ... include lithium, sodium, rubidium, cesium, and francium. They are among the most active metals.
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