Salt is made up of Sodium and Chloride. The sodium is the portion of the salt that has all the negative side effects when eaten in large quantities. The dietary guidelines actually say that your sodium intake should be no more than 2300 mg per day for the general population. If you are overweight or have heart problems or are over the age of 51 you should decrease you intake even further. This number is usually no more than 1500 mg per day. Most Americans injest over 3400 mg per day. Remember your risk of hypertension increases with age so that is why you should decrease your sodium intake the older you get.
You cannot completely cut salt out of your diet. Your body needs sodium to do all it's vital functions. You need to be getting sodium from somewhere. Salt helps maintain the water/fluid in our blood cells. It is also used to transmit information in our nerves and muscles. Sodium is used to help the absorption of certain nutrients from the small intestines. Our bodies cannot make sodium so we need to get it from out food.
Salt does not contribute to actual weight gain but the sodium can cause your body to retain water which will make the number on the scale higher. This also leaves you feeling bloated. The more salt you inject the more you drink. If you like to drink soda instead of water then you are increasing your weight gain and salt intake even more by quenching your thirst.
One of the main reasons to decrease salt intake is that a 2013 study conducted by Harvard Medical School found that excessive salt intake could be to blame for 1 in 10 US deaths and 2.3 million deaths worldwide in 2010. This is definitely not a new idea. Salt intake has long been related to high blood pressure.
One of the main ways we can decrease our sodium intake is by switching from processed foods to unprocessed foods. It is estimated that 80% of an Americans sodium intake comes from processed foods.
Are you saying that you cannot give up adding salt to your plate? Try it for one month. After about 21 days your taste buds will readjust and won't miss the added salt. Once you cut back on the high sodium processed foods you'll start to notice you wont add as much as you don't even miss it.
Now there also is a good salt and a bad salt. Did you know that Sea salt is better for you than regular table salt? Sea salt contains over 80 nutrients while regular table salt includes extra ingredients like aluminum that can be harmful .
I hope this post gives you something to think about. I'm not a medical professional but do have a Masters degree in Bioengineering. this is just my opinion but I think the research speaks for itself.
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