Salt
Let there be work, bread, water and salt for all - Nelson Mandela
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Sodium: The Sneaky Source of a Silent Killer
You’ve heard it for years: Cut down on sodium. The more salt in your diet, the more problems for your body. The science behind this could fill a library. The dangers of ignoring it could fill a morgue.
Chilling as that sounds, we know that too much sodium can cause high blood pressure, and we know that high blood pressure is a primary cause of heart disease and stroke, the two leading causes of death in the world. Nearly a billion people globally, and about 80 million American adults, have high blood pressure. If you’re not already in that group, be aware that 90 percent of us will develop this condition at some point in our…
Resources
Has Salt Gotten An Unfair Shake?
For such a simple compound, salt is complicated. Sodium is a key element in table salt, and it's also essential for life. It helps regulate our blood volume. It shuttles nutrients into our bodies and brains. It allows our muscles to contract and our nerves to pulse with electricity. Yet for decades, we've been told to avoid it.
Is salt good for you after all? The evidence says no
While we wait for more research to explaining discrepancies related to a J-shape curve, the evidence overwhelmingly finds lower sodium intakes, compared to higher intakes, lead to important reductions in blood pressure.
Remind me again, why is salt bad for you?
While there is some controversy around the effect of salt on blood pressure, most of the literature indicates there is a progressive association, which means the more sodium you consume, the more likely you are to die prematurely.
Salt, Healthy? Why It Might No Longer Be Public Enemy No. 1
For decades, we've been told to eat less salt for lower blood pressure—but could this advice be harming, rather than helping, our health?
How much salt you should eat, explained
If you’re confused about whether salt is really the number one enemy of public health, you’re probably not alone. And it’s the fault of people like me. I’ll say it plainly: a lot of the journalism about sodium intake is crap.
The Great Salt Debate: So Bad?
This week experts warned against the dangers of overdoing low-sodium diets. That's a step toward what salt advocates like "The Salt Guru" Morton Satin have enjoined for years.
Are Low-Salt Diets Necessary (or Healthy) for Most People?
Some say cutting salt consumption can lower your death risk; others say the salt threat is overblown.
Clearing Up the Confusion About Salt
If you’re confused about salt, I’m not surprised. There’s been a steady back-and-forth on claims that reducing dietary sodium (which represents 40 percent of the salt molecule) is crucial to our well-being, countered by claims that following this advice can sometimes be a health hazard.
Do Most Americans Consume Too Much Salt? The Unhealthy Controversy Over Salt Intake
As regards studies of the effects of salt reduction on health, not all studies are equal. Furthermore, not everyone reacts to salt in the same way. There is little dispute that a high sodium intake is bad for health. But, according to epidemiologists who have spent their careers studying salt and high blood pressure, mandating a low salt intake may have a beneficial effect on some people but may harm others.
FDA Looks to Cut Salt Content in Food
A fight at the dining table is escalating between regulators and the food industry, this time over government proposals to cut Americans’ average salt intake by almost one-third.
How Can Salt Be Proven Toxic for Your Entire Body?
Carefully manage your daily salt intake, and if you at any time notice symptoms of high blood pressure and fluid retention, don’t take your time and wait for things to get better.
How Salt Shakes Out
Risks of too little sodium are a valid concern only at levels massively below mean intake in the U.S., while the harms of excess are with us right now. The priority, obviously, is fixing what’s broken.
It's Time to End the War on Salt
The zealous drive by politicians to limit our salt intake has little basis in science.
Please Don’t Pass the Salt
There’s stealth salt, we’ve discovered, hidden in nearly everything. There’s even salt in romaine lettuce! (But only 5 mg, so pigging out on romaine — if that’s what you want to do — is okay.)
Salt Is a Secret Weapon
Salt, if properly understood and utilized, can be an indispensable tool in a home cook's arsenal. The problem is that most home cooks don't know how to use it properly.
Salt May Actually Prevent Your Body from Absorbing Fat
A new study says salt isn't nearly as bad for you as previously thought. In fact, when it's combined with fat, something magical happens.
Salt, We Misjudged You
And yet, this eat-less-salt argument has been surprisingly controversial — and difficult to defend. Not because the food industry opposes it, but because the actual evidence to support it has always been so weak.
Shaking Up The Salt Myth: Healthy Salt Recommendations
While salt was originally prized by many cultures for thousands of years, in the past century it has been demonized; some have gone as far as calling it the single most harmful substance in the food supply.
Take Low-Salt Advice With a Grain of You Know What
There seems to be pretty good evidence that people with high blood pressure who consume an excessive amount of salt should cut back. That’s where doctors started back in the day, and that concept holds up. But the evidence doesn’t support the idea that increased salt consumption by people with normal blood pressure makes that much of a difference.
We're eating too much salt. And it's killing us
The world has an increasingly high taste for salty foods — a taste that new research suggests leads to to 1.65 million excess deaths annually. The massive study, overseen by 10 researchers working in Boston and London, brought together two important data points. First, they looked at what we know from prior studies of how much salt increases the risk of death from heart disease. Then they looked at how much salt each country is consuming.
Why Is Too Much Salt Bad for You?
There's some research that shows if everybody reduced sodium in their diet, the rates of heart disease in the United States would go way down.
Salt not as damaging to health as previously thought, says study
New research reignites a row with scientists who want to reduce salt intake to near zero.
A-HED A Salt-Loving Nation Tries to Shake the Habit
Researchers in Japan are developing high-tech chopsticks that trick eaters into tasting a lot of salt in bland, low-salt foods; forks and spoons are next
Are You Getting Too Much Salt in Your Diet? Probably Not
The optimal amount of sodium is considerably more than the teaspoon a day usually recommended.
Making Sense of the Salt Shaker
Chefs and home cooks are shaking their heads over federal recommendations to reduce sodium intake to the equivalent of one teaspoon of table salt a day.
The Single Most Important Ingredient
Having experienced the transformative power of salt, I wanted to learn how to get that zing every time I cooked. I thought about the foods I loved to eat growing up — and that bite of seaside cucumber and feta, in particular. I realized then why it had tasted so good. It was properly salted.
Which Type Of Salt Is The Healthiest?
Has anyone ever told you that you should switch to sea salt or Himalayan salt? Or has anyone ever told you kosher salt is better for you than table salt? As both a cook and a kidney doctor, I understand the importance of salt in all aspects of life.
Sodium: The Sneaky Source of a Silent Killer
You’ve heard it for years: Cut down on sodium. The more salt in your diet, the more problems for your body. The science behind this could fill a library. The dangers of ignoring it could fill a morgue.
7 Health Risks of Eating Too Much Salt
oo much salt in the diet, which is marked by high sodium content, can deeply impact almost all biochemical pathways in your body. As a standard, your dietary intake of sodium should not exceed 2,000 milligrams per day. Any excess of this amount can inhibit the proper absorption of nutrients and disrupt normal body functions.
Action on Salt
Action on Salt (formerly known as Consensus Action on Salt & Health, CASH) is a group concerned with salt and its effects on health, based at Queen Mary University of London and supported by 24 expert scientific members.
World Action On Salt and Health
World Action On Salt and Health (WASH) was established in 2005 and is a global group with the mission to improve the health of populations throughout the world by achieving a gradual reduction in salt intake.
CDC
Most of the sodium we consume is in the form of salt, and the vast majority of sodium we consume is in processed and restaurant foods. Your body needs a small amount of sodium to work properly, but too much sodium is bad for your health. Excess sodium can increase your blood pressure and your risk for a heart disease and stroke.
NHS
You don't have to add salt to food to be eating too much – 75% of the salt we eat is already in everyday foods such as bread, breakfast cereal and ready meals.
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