Potassium chloride supplementation over two weeks in people with kidney disease
What it found
In 191 people with kidney disease, taking potassium chloride for two weeks raised blood potassium levels.
About one in ten developed high blood potassium.
What they found
Studies in people
Blood potassium rose
Taking potassium chloride raised average blood potassium from 4.3 to 4.7 mmol/L. The amount of potassium leaving the body in urine also went up.
High potassium in some
About 11% of participants, or 21 people, developed high blood potassium. Those affected tended to be older and started with higher blood potassium levels.
Kidney function unchanged
The supplement did not change kidney filtration rate, protein leaking into urine, or blood pressure over the two weeks.
Other blood changes
Blood chloride went up slightly while bicarbonate went down. Urine became more acidic, but a waste product called ammonium stayed the same.
What the authors conclude
- They note that potassium chloride raised blood potassium by 0.4 mmol/L in these kidney disease patients over two weeks.
- They warn this increase may lead to high blood potassium in older patients or those who start with higher levels.
- They advise that longer studies are needed to see if any heart and kidney benefits outweigh the risk of high blood potassium.
How it was done
Past studies hint that getting enough potassium from food may protect the kidneys. But scientists do not yet know what happens when people with kidney disease take extra potassium, or how often it causes dangerously high blood potassium.
Researchers gave 191 patients with chronic kidney disease 40 mmol of potassium chloride each day. The patients were on average 68 years old and took part for two weeks. Most were men, and many had diabetes or took common blood pressure medicines.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- Two weeks is a short time, so this cannot show what happens over months or years of taking potassium chloride.
- Because everyone received the supplement without a comparison group, we cannot be certain every change was caused by it.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- Erasmus Medical Center, The Netherlands; Amsterdam University Medical Center, The Netherlands; University Medical Center Groningen, The Netherlands
The paper
- Title
- Effects of Short-Term Potassium Chloride Supplementation in Patients with CKD
- Type
- Study
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- Gritter M, Wouda RD, Yeung SMH, et al (2022). Effects of Short-Term Potassium Chloride Supplementation in Patients with CKD. Journal of the American Society of Nephrology. doi:10.1681/ASN.2022020147Free full textPubMed 35609996DOI
Summary written 30 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error