Let's Shake Up The Truth About *Salt*

Hey, guys!

This article on salt is written by the famous and credible Mayo Clinic staff, with some editing and highlights from me along the way and some notable mentions from C. Kresser. However, I feel it's an important subject matter that's detrimental to our health, and I want to share the truth about it all with you, so that you can be well informed about caring properly for yourselves and your loved ones. I will highlight some important facts that you'll want to keep close to mind. As important, please be sure to share this post with others too - thankh you!

Sodium: How to tame your salt habit 

Find out how much sodium you really need, what high-sodium foods to avoid, and ways to prepare and serve foods without adding sodium.
By Mayo Clinic staff

If you're like many people, you're getting far more sodium than is recommended, and that could lead to serious health problems.

You probably aren't even aware of just how much sodium is in your diet. Consider that a single teaspoon of table salt, which is a combination of sodium and chloride, has 2,325 milligrams (mg) of sodium. And it's not just table salt you have to worry about. Many processed and prepared foods contain sodium.

See how sodium sneaks into your diet and ways you can shake the habit.

Sodium: Essential in small amounts

Your body needs some sodium to function properly because it:

• Helps maintain the right balance of fluids in your body (therefore, adequate amounts of salt intake is necessary for the body's water supply. See my previous post on Water, "INFUSED WATER: Fruits, Veggies, Herbs, Essential Oils, ACV, and Lemon Juice"  - SW)
• Helps transmit nerve impulses
• Influences the contraction and relaxation of muscles

Your kidneys naturally balance the amount of sodium stored in your body for optimal health. When your body sodium is low, your kidneys essentially hold on to the sodium. When body sodium is high, your kidneys excrete the excess in urine.

My observation: this method of excretion also happens should you notice that you're sweating profusely with the slightest of activities. For instance, washing dishes, shopping, carrying grocery bags, or even while sleeping you may wake up in a pile of sweat. This is due to the body's attempt to excrete the excess amount of salt stored within your body, and the kidneys are working at an all time high to rid you of it, which can ultimately lead to kidney damage/failure if you don't remedy this problem fast.  This sort of excessive sweating is also a good sign that shows that you need to workout more often and/or drink more water to aid this process of excretion. Therefore, frequent urination is not necessarily bad, except that you're also losing calcium in the process and that must be replaced subsequently each day. However, eating potassium along with calcium rich foods is key to fighting kidney stones, keeping them from developing and be sure to increase our intake of water. Besides that negative factor, frequent urination simply means that the body is trying to rid itself of excess salt. Again, this is a good warning sign to do more to aid this process and ease the pressure on our system having to work overtime to make it happen, which can lead to damages that results in ailments and/or diseases of vital organs. You definitely don't want to wait until it's all gone bad. Our bodies have a way of sending us a signal if something is going or has gone wrong. So, please pay more attention to what your body is trying to tell you. It can save your life. - SW.

But if for some reason your kidneys can't eliminate enough sodium, the sodium starts to build up in your blood. Because sodium attracts and holds water, your blood volume increases, which makes your heart work harder and increases pressure in your arteries. Such diseases as congestive heart failure, cirrhosis and chronic kidney disease can make it hard for your kidneys to keep sodium levels balanced.Some people's bodies are more sensitive to the effects of sodium than are others. If you're sodium sensitive, you retain sodium more easily, leading to fluid retention and increased blood pressure. If this becomes chronic, it can lead to heart disease, stroke, kidney disease and congestive heart failure.

Sodium: How much do you need?

***V.I.P. INFORMATION**** : The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend limiting sodium to *less than* 2,300 mg a day — or **1,500** mg (which amounts to 1 teaspoon per day - SW) if you're age 51 or older, or **if you are black**, or if you have high blood pressure, diabetes or chronic kidney disease. 

Keep in mind that these are upper limits, and less is usually best, especially if you're sensitive to the effects of sodium. If you aren't sure how much sodium your diet should include, talk to your doctor or dietitian.

Sodium: What are the major dietary sources?

The average American gets about 3,400 mg of sodium a day — much more than recommended (a major health problem). Here are the main sources of sodium in a typical diet:

Processed and prepared foods. The vast majority of sodium in the typical American diet comes from foods that are processed and prepared. These foods are typically high in salt and additives that contain sodium. Processed foods include bread, prepared dinners like pasta, meat and egg dishes, pizza, cold cuts and bacon, cheese, soups, and fast foods.

Natural sources (from which salt is derived and taken into the body -  SW). Some foods naturally 

contain sodium. These include all vegetables (a better choice always - SW) and dairy products (not so much recommended, as it causes other issues within the body, like weakening your immune system, causes bloating and produces excess mucus -  SW), meat (too much is not good for you, especially if they're infused with hormones and other harmful chemicals/ingredients in raising them - SW), and shellfish (the ocean water is loaded with toxins and pollutants, dumped in by the corporate monsters out there, plus very high in bad cholesterol, esp. shrimp - SW). While they don't have an abundance of sodium, eating these foods does add to your overall body sodium content. For example, 1 cup (237 milliliters) of low-fat milk has about 100 mg of sodium.

I've attached hereto a rainbow of veggies/fruit chart to help you be/remain accountable for your daily fruits/veggies consumption. See it, download and print it here, Daily Rainbow of Veggies Chart.
In the kitchen and at the table. Many recipes call for salt, and many people also salt their food at the table. Condiments also may contain sodium. One tablespoon (15 milliliters) of soy sauce, for example, has about 1,000 mg of sodium.

Sodium: How to tame your salt habit

**Tips for cutting back on sodium**

Virtually all Americans can benefit from reducing the sodium in their diet. 

Here are more ways you can cut back on sodium:

• Eat more fresh foods. Most fresh fruits and vegetables are naturally low in sodium. Also, fresh meat is lower in sodium than are luncheon meat, bacon, hot dogs, sausage and ham. Buy fresh or frozen poultry or meat that hasn't been injected with a sodium-containing solution. Look on the label or ask your butcher.
• Opt for low-sodium products. If you do buy processed foods, choose those that are labeled "low sodium." Better yet, buy plain whole-grain rice and pasta instead of ones that have added seasonings.
• Remove salt from recipes whenever possible. You can leave out the salt in many recipes, including casseroles, soups, stews and other main dishes that you cook. Look for cookbooks that focus on lowering risks of high blood pressure and heart disease.
• Limit use of sodium-laden condiments. Soy sauce, salad dressings, sauces, dips, ketchup, mustard and relish all contain sodium.
• Use herbs, spices and other flavorings to season foods. Use fresh or dried herbs, spices, zest from citrus fruit, and fruit juices to jazz up your meals. Sea salt, however, isn't a good substitute. It has about the same amount of sodium as table salt.
• Use salt substitutes wisely. Some salt substitutes or light salts contain a mixture of table salt and other compounds. To achieve that familiar salty taste, you may use too much of the substitute — and get too much sodium. Also, many salt substitutes contain potassium chloride. Although potassium can lessen some of the problems from excess sodium, too much potassium can be harmful especially if you have kidney problems or if you're taking medications for congestive heart failure or high blood pressure that cause potassium retention.

Sodium: Be a savvy shopper

Taste alone may not tell you which foods are high in sodium. For example, you may not think a bagel tastes salty, but a typical 4-inch (10-centimeter) oat-bran bagel has about 600 mg of sodium, and even a slice of whole-wheat bread contains about 100 mg of sodium.

So how can you tell which foods are high in sodium? Read food labels. The Nutrition Facts label found on most packaged and processed foods lists the amount of sodium in each serving. It also lists whether the ingredients include salt or sodium-containing compounds, such as:

• Monosodium glutamate (MSG)
• Baking soda (also called sodium bicarbonate)
• Baking powder
• Disodium phosphate
• Sodium alginate
• Sodium citrate
• Sodium nitrite

Try to avoid products with more than 200 mg of sodium per serving. And be sure you know how many servings are in a package — that information is also on the Nutrition Facts label.

Sodium: More tips to cut back

**Pay attention especially here***: The supermarket is full of foods labeled "reduced sodium" or "light in sodium." But don't assume that means they're low in sodium. For example, a can of chicken noodle soup that claims to have 25 percent less sodium still has a whopping 524 mg in 1 cup. It's only lower in salt compared with regular chicken noodle soup that has more than 790 mg of sodium in a cup.

Here's a rundown on common sodium claims and what they really mean:
Sodium-free or salt-free. Each serving in this product contains less than 5 mg of sodium.

• Very low sodium. Each serving contains 35 mg of sodium or less.
• Low sodium. Each serving contains 140 mg of sodium or less.
• Reduced or less sodium. The product contains at least 25 percent less sodium than the regular version.
• Lite or light in sodium. The sodium content has been reduced by at least 50 percent from the regular version.
• Unsalted or no salt added. No salt is added during processing of a food that normally contains salt. 

However, some foods with these labels may still be high in sodium because some of the ingredients may be high in sodium.
Go low and take it slow

Your taste for salt is acquired, so you can learn to enjoy less. Decrease your use of salt gradually and your taste buds will adjust.

After a few weeks of cutting back on salt, you probably won't miss it, and some foods may even taste too salty. Start by using no more than 1/4 teaspoon of salt daily — at the table and in cooking. Then throw away the salt shaker. As you use less salt, your preference for it diminishes, allowing you to enjoy the taste of the food itself, with heart-healthy benefits. 

Types of salt that are not recommended

One sea salt that is not recommended for dietary consumption is Dead Sea salt, due to its high bromide content. (9) The Dead Sea has the highest bromide concentration of any large body of water in the world, and bromide toxicity can occur after consumption. Some argue that sea salt is no longer healthy due to the level of pollution in our oceans today, though evidence for this is scant. (10) If this is a concern, there are salts produced from ancient geological oceans, like Real Salt from Utah beds or Himalayan pink salt (picked up some of this baby the other day, but I only use a pinch - very potent stuff. Great for baths too! :-) - SW), which would not have the same level of pollution as salt from much of the world’s oceans. ~ C. Kresser

Regular table salt, conversely, is heavily processed, generally devoid of trace minerals, and commonly contains undesirable additives such as anti-caking agents like sodium silicoaluminate or sodium ferrocyanide. Therefore, generally avoiding table salt is a good idea, though care must be taken to ensure adequate iodine intake from other sources once iodized table salt has been removed from the diet. ~ C. Kresser

Additional truths about salt is that "people who are quite active or sweat a lot should consume salt on the higher end, and those who are less active may want to consume on the lower end. Natural sources of sodium include sea vegetables -  (Hence, I love eating dried seaweed - SW), fish, shellfish, and meat, plus certain plants such as beets, carrots, celery, spinach, and turnips." ~ C. Kresser . From all the information that I've taken in and due to much observation of self and others, I also believe that climate based upon which part of the world you live in and your eating habits of fresh foods vs. processed, plays a major role in the daily required salt intake. People who live in warmer climates and sweat often due to the heat from the sun, I would think would need to increase their salt intake through the foods they eat to 2 to 3 teaspoons per day or via fresh foods vs. those who live in colder regions of the world or have changing seasons and do little sweat producing activities or drink too little water, should limit or adjust their salt intake accordingly to less or more, depending on whether it's a warm or cold time of the year. A safe measure to follow is not to go below 1 teaspoon or above 3 teaspoons of salt on a daily basis - that's my tidbit. - SW.

Ok, folks, I hope you've been truly enlightened on this topic of salt. Be sure to put away the artificial methods and indulge more into getting in your balanced daily dosage of salt through fresh foods that you prepare: fruits/veggies as first choice. Additionally, watch closely the processed foods that you buy, as they are often times than not, loaded with sodium. So, the goal should be to cook more fresh foods than not. Drink plenty of water and exercise daily to ease the pressure of the body's defense mechanisms in attempts to balance out our system through excretion. Isn't it beautiful? That even though we may often fail to do what's right for our body, the body still goes to work in fighting for us, but it will lose that battle if we don't take heed to those subtle warnings/signs and do what's best for it. Alright, get to it already! Take great care of yourselves until next time. Chow! :-)