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U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion

Increase potassium consumption by people aged 2 years and over — NWS‑14 Data Methodology and Measurement

On this page:  About the National Data  |  Methodology  |  History

About the National Data

Data

Data Source:  National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), CDC/NCHS

Baseline: 2,517 milligrams (mg) of potassium from food and dietary supplements was the mean total daily intake by persons aged 2 years and over in 2013-16

Target: 2,769 mg

Numerator
Sum of daily intake of potassium (in mg) among persons aged 2 years and over.
Denominator
Number of persons aged 2 years and over.
Target-setting method
Percent improvement
Target-setting method details
10 percent improvement from the baseline.
Target-setting method justification
Trend data were not available for this objective. A 10 percent improvement from the baseline was used to calculate a target. This method was used because based on data from the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) What We Eat in America, there has been little or no change in potassium intake from food and dietary supplements for the United States population aged two and older in the last six years.

Methodology

Questions used to obtain the national baseline data

(For additional information, please visit the data source page linked above.)

From the 2013-14 and 2015-16 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, Dietary Supplements and Prescription Medication Questionnaire:

Numerator:
{Have you/Has SP} used or taken any vitamins, minerals, herbals or other dietary supplements in the past 30 days? Include prescription and non-prescription supplements.
  1. Yes
  2. No
  3. Refused
  4. Don't Know
In the past 30 days, {have you/has SP} used or taken medication for which a prescription is needed? Include only those products prescribed by a health professional such as a doctor or dentist.
  1. Yes
  2. No
  3. Refused
  4. Don't Know
May I please see the containers for all the {vitamins, minerals, herbals, and other dietary supplements}, {and} {nonprescription antacids} {and} {prescription medicines} that {you/SP} used or took in the past 30 days?
  1. Container seen
  2. Container not seen
  3. Only pharmacy printout seen (for prescription medicines)
For dietary supplements: Enter name from product label and manufacturer/distributor/store brand name and address.

For prescription medication: Name from the label is recorded and also matched to a product in the drug database during data collection.

In the past {30 days/number and unit}, on how many days did {you/SP} take {PRODUCT NAME}?

  1. ______ Days (Number from 1 to 30)
  2. Refused
  3. Don't Know
On the days that {you/SP} took {PRODUCT NAME}, how much did {you/SP} usually take on a single day?
  1. ______ Number of capsules, tablet/pills; teaspoons; tablespoons; fluid ounces/ounces; drops/droppers; packets/packs/packages; ml.; wafers; other
  2. Refused
  3. Don't Know

Methodology notes

To determine total potassium intake, several sources of potassium were considered, including foods and dietary supplements. The NHANES food consumption data included the collection of 1 day of dietary data for all respondents through in-person 24-hour recalls and collection of a 2nd-day 24-hour recall by telephone. Both dietary recalls are obtained by trained dietary interviewers using USDA's Automated Multiple Pass Method (AMPM). For these analyses, potassium intake from only the first 24-hour recall will be used. Each respondent was asked to recall the kinds and amounts of foods and beverages consumed at home and away from home during the previous day (midnight to midnight). Amounts of foods and beverages reported in household measures were then converted to gram amounts, and potassium intake from foods and beverages was estimated with the use of food composition files.

Breast-feeding children were excluded from the analysis.

Age-adjustment notes

This Indicator uses Age-Adjustment Groups:

  • Total: 2-5, 6-11, 12-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80+
  • Sex: 2-5, 6-11, 12-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80+
  • Race/Ethnicity: 2-5, 6-11, 12-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80+
  • Educational Attainment: 25-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80+
  • Family Income (percent poverty threshold): 2-5, 6-11, 12-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80+
  • Health Insurance Status: 2-5, 6-11, 12-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-64
  • Marital Status: 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80+
  • Country of Birth: 2-5, 6-11, 12-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80+
  • Veteran Status: 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80+
  • Activity limitation: 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80+
  • Obesity Status - Adults: 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80+

History

Revision History
Revised. 

In 2022, the baseline was revised from 2,512 to 2,517 due to a change in participant exclusion criteria for consistency with the analyses for food and nutrient intake objectives that were retained from HP2020. The target was revised from 2,763 to 2,769 using the original target setting method.