Almost everybody consumes too much salt.
Sodium is hidden in almost all processed foods, and is used way too much in many restaurants as well.
Studies from the Harvard School of Public Health have shown that 99.2% of the population ingests too much Sodium Chloride. And up to 90% of that intake are consumed via the foods we eat!
Too much salt intake is actually the reason for 1.65 million deaths per year.
The study compared date from over 66 different countries, plus 107 additional single studies.
The problem is that salt is Addictive - that's the reason why it's so hard not to finish a bag of potato chips.
But why exactly is it addictive?
We have to look back on our evolutionary history. About 2 million years ago, our ancestors were fighting for survival in the African savanna.
Both salt and water were extremely scarce.
That's why we gradually learned to re-fill our salt and water levels whenever we can- and that's exactly the problem.
When salt is there, we eat it. That's almost like a natural instinct to us, that only few can resist.
Statistically, humans worldwide ingest around 3.6g salt per day.
But the WHO suggests that only 2g of salt per day should be consumed - anything more than that will be harmful to our health.
And there are big regional differences when we look at salt intake in certain countries - while the average person in an african country consumes quite a low amount of sodium (only 1.5g daily in Kenia), the opposite is true for most countries in central asia (up to 5g daily!).
The US and Europe are placed roughly in the high to middle range of salt intake.
Where in our diet is the salt hidden?
80% of our salt intake are actually a result of eating processed foods, and not just adding table salt to a meal.
We get another surprisingly high amount of salt from bread (27-28%), as well as from meat products (15-21%) and dairy products / cheese (10-11%).
The foods that have been preserved with salt are the ones with the highest amount of sodium, as well as frozen processed foods and instant soups.
So what exactly does salt do to our bodies?
Salt is especially harmful to our heart.
In General, salt dries out our bodies. But fluids are extremely important for many different functions in our bodies to run smoothly!
Our cells control their water supply mostly through the salt levels.
When we ingest too much salt, a so-called "Concentration Gradient" happens: the level of salt outside of the cell will be higher than inside, which then makes the cell dry out due to the osmotic pressure.
Cardiovascular diseases are very often linked to high sodium intake as well, and elevates the blood fat levels.
It also has a negative effect on out kidneys.
If we ingest too much salt, a lot of it gets released via the kidneys, which results in a remarkable loss of water.
Another effect of high sodium intake might be raised blood pressure.
The more salt you consume, the more you have to drink in order to balance out the levels of salt and water in your body.
If you don't manage to drink enough, it will lead to vasoconstriction, which in turn elevate the blood pressure.
Conclusion
Salt is hidden in almost all processed foods - even where we don't expect it. That's partly the reason why almost everybody consumes too much salt! Salt dries out our bodies and therefore affects our organs negatively - especially our heart and kidneys.
The problem is that salt is addictive and we are hard-wired to eat a lot of salt because it used to be crucial for survival.
Nowadays, there's too much salt in most foods, so it's very important to keep an eye on your salt intake and reduce it as much as possible.
How much salt do you consume?
© Sirwinchester
I remember back in middle school doing the food diary for a day and I was consuming WAYYY too much salt based on that. Little did I know that not a single person in my class was consuming at or even close to the recommended value. I still to this day rarely put added salt on my food, but it doesn't look like that is really enough. Insightful post and I'm glad you wrote about this!
Middle schools were the days of never worrying about salt intake.
Doesn't mean that it is any less damaging though. Salt intake builds up over time not to mention there is likely a correlation between diet as a child and food choices in adulthood. It's why kids with obese parents tend to end up obese as well.
good point, that's true.
Almost everyone consumes too much salt without knowing!
follow me i will you plz
To be fair, more recent science has actually shown that the link between sodium and a lot of the negative health effects listed in this post are actually a lot weaker than previously thought. Sodium sensitivity is also another key aspect to keep in mind. Not everyone is affected the same way.
http://www.ncpa.org/pdfs/Salt-Sensitivity-a-Determinant-of-Blood-Pressure.pdf
Anyone curious about learning a little more about this should take some time and check out this recent study or some other more recent ones.
I would have to agree with you and I generally add salt to my meals.
I would have wriiten this article about sugar or gluten.
Interesting, thanks for sharing!
Wow, what an insightful and well written article! I am a bordering on obsessive health freak and I do watch my sodium but I never really looked into what exactly it does to our bodies! I'm so glad you provided such extensive information so I can be even more conscious of my sodium intake! I do have a question, is pink Himalayan salt lower in sodium? I know it has a ton more minerals than table salt, but I don't know if it safer in regards to sodium.
First of all, thanks for your feedback I'm glad you enjoyed the post!
Good question about the himalayan pink salt - yes you are right about the minerals, that's the biggest factor that makes it healthier. in terms of sodium - it still contains lots of sodium, only that it's not processed and natural. so it's still bad for you in large quantities, but at least a little bit healthier
Its scary how much salt do w mw or any of my family consum then !
And id u think its the same with sugar and almost every single thing that might hurt the body, is pretty much in every single item we eat/day.
Thanks @sirwinchester
Upvotes and will resteem for sure.
Good point, sugar AND salt are hidden everywhere!
Salt is an essential nutrient. The refined form of it sold in supermarkets and put on McDonald's chips is not.
For anyone wanting to learn about good salt vs garbage salt, I recommend this Steemit post from six months ago:
https://steemit.com/food/@kiwideb/the-sorry-story-of-salt-and-how-we-got-fooled-again
Instead of table salt, consume pink himalayan salt! Check out the many health benefits. I take a pinch of himalayan salt everyday with a glass of water!
Excellent suggestion. @rishherbalist
All things in moderation, but salt is not as bad as sugar. Sugar is the worst, in fact salt is an electrolyte and our body needs it to help conduct electrical signals throughout our body.
Yes salt is essential for many reasons, unlike sugar which is just a toxin.
https://steemit.com/food/@kiwideb/the-sorry-story-of-salt-and-how-we-got-fooled-again
I never realized salt was this bad for you. I have a question, why is it, when I got heat stroke a few years back, a parent, who is a nurse, told me to eat something with salt? To bring my BP back up?
Because without salt you die.
Salt is also pumped in to chicken for taste and preparation. Many other hidden salt mines to watch out for lol. I've just started a plant based diet with lots of fresh veggies and fruit. I feel better after just 2 weeks it's quite amazing!
if you replace salt with lemon juice is the best.Also lemon juice is a good electrolyte for the brain.
It really depends on how much you sweat. The more you sweat due to exercise or hot weather, the more salt you need.
Taking too much salt is actually only one half of the story, getting too little potassium is the other. It really messes up with one of the most important mechanism of cellular metabolism the sodium-potassium pump. Long story short - it is not enough to just reduce salt intake but potassium intake should be boosted as well through consuming more fruits and vegetables (which seems to be the conclusion of my every health and diet related post :). But here's a simple advice; anyone who suspects he might have low potassium intake should eat a banana. Now. It is such a good source that its shipment routinely trigger radiation alerts on borders, because by being an excellent collector of potassium banana actually concentrates radioactive isotopes to the point of becoming mildly radioactive (no risk for health).
There are so many food in the supermarket with too much salt or sugar in it. And if we would get rid of it probably all people would would cry that it doesn't taste good anymore.
I think many people have an unhealthy taste because of it.
I'm of the belief that each individual can control their own salt levels and maintain them at good levels simply by salting food until it tastes 'right'. If your body needs salt you will crave salt and if you have too much salt than food will taste too salty. When governments or their agents set recommended daily allowances and demonise things like salt (like has been done for 30 years) it concerns me. I feel that they set the recommended levels of some elements or vitamins too low so that people think they are getting enough but in actually fact they are not. Vitamin D is a prime example of this in my opinion.
Table salt is shit and should be avoided and replaced by stuff like Himalayan salt (as suggested in another reply) or kosher salt.
Here's an article with a slightly different viewpoint
http://www.getoffyouracid.com/the-5-misconceptions-about-salt-that-could-be-ruining-your-health/
too much salt also makes us sweat too much and decreases our brain power...
useful info
@sirwinchester Very Healthy Post. Great Topic , very underrated Topic. People don't take it seriously. Excess salt is very harmful for body, it increases water retention in body and make us Bloated and Chubby. People looking for weight loss should consume very less salt and sugar. Nice Post. Upvoted and Followed. have a healthy day. :)
what will happen if there is less salt in body?
Wow 2g-5g RDI, I never add it to my food after preparation but it sounds like im still overdoing it. Will have to take better notice of salt in my foods as well I guess.
Very informative. The only non drug that is worse is sugar. (Resteemed)
Upvoted! =)
good
Salt is just as dangerous as sugar . Thank you for this. I Loves health articles. keep on
Almost every time I eat out, I'm drinking water for hours afterwards. I used to love salt, but after changing my dietary habits, I've learned to use way less, and now I'm much more sensitive to it.
A good tip is to salt your food when it's on your plate; don't cook with it!
this is true. I just started to eat healthy and I'm feeling great!
Salt is healthy , sugar is bad , burnt food is bad , butter is good , eggs are good , olive oil is bad , margarine is bad , ghee is good , lard is good , processed meats are bad , rare steak is good, soda is bad sugar free soda is poison. Vegetables are good , small quantity of fruit is good. Fried is bad.
Moderate excercise is good, exessive excercise is bad.
Now every knows what healthy is
healthy food is always the best
A most excellent article, I stopped eating a number of those foods such as pizza, chips and pretzels the amount of salt in them was insane. I have now started cooking at home and adding a small amount of food to my dishes for a little extra flavor however a majority of the flavor I get now is from herbs I grow.
I am on a diet and I was just wondering today, why I can barely eat salt on this diet? Thanks for the reminder.
Good read. One way to help keep the levels at a more reasonable level is to hydrate. Lots of water will help if you have to eat processed foods.
Sea salt
Now following you Sir, Winchester! This is a great reminder, I myself often use too much salt and have my whole life. Recently having gone Vegan has helped, but still something that needs work!
A very interesting post I've left my voice in your post that I love her I UPVOTE. And do not be shy to read a bit in my post and I hope you can do the same to me sir. Because your voice is so precious to me
It could be a coincidence, but I was looking for this post today morning. And you just posted it!
Everything should be controlled these days. Anything extra could cause harm. That's the reason going vegetarian helped me a lot in having a healthy life. Eating greens is the way if you want to live to the your limits. Eat green, stay healthy.
Food industries has become completely commercial. they don't give damm what people eat. They just want to make money. We have to be aware about what ever we eat. and keep update our self by reading unbiased researches about food.
OK so eat less processed food or preferably none.
Also use Himalayan salt instead of regular table salt ...it has 84 trace minerals your body needs, and less sodium.
That's a good plan to be healthy. Cook from scratch and use organic foods :)
Great information! It's been years since I cut down on my salt intake. I've had hypertension since I was 16! I also have hereditary heart disease, so I'm very careful about it. Same thing with sugar. My dad died of a heart attack at 46. My two older brothers as well. Thanks for passing this info o for those who don't know the harm in extra salt intake.
processed foods are no no no!
That was a great post @sirwinchester! It's waaay too easy to overconsume salt with the foods we eat today.
For example: Did you know one package of Lipton Noodle soup has 2,600 mg of salt!? Usually I can get 2 bowls per package, so eating one bowl has 1,300 mg of salt. 😨
great post for everyone! agree completely! I use Mrs. Dash and many many salt substitutes. Western diets are soooo full of salt! I applaud your efforts!
Eat sugar instead.
I think now is the time to stop, uhmm, well, eat less chips now... QnQ
I have heard about the harmful effects of consuming too much salt for the longest time but never really thought much of it. Your informative post has made me reconsider this, you are right about the hidden salt that is secretly creeping into our system, I think it helps to stay aware of that especially while dining out.
hi, I live in Myanmar Country.
Please.follow and vote me.
so my mom feed me unsalted food.
taste of hell, health of paradise.
Does this make sense ?
Americans in general have a horrible diet. I was raised not to touch salt. It has saved my life as a result. Awesome post!
That can be a scary question to answer when you look at all the other seasoning and sauces we use on our foods. I try to cut down my intake as much as possible but it's hard because some of my favorite foods are the ones that are not good for me such as fried food. The other thing be sauces such as hot sauces or barbecue sauce both have sodium in them as well. This was a great ready and the pictures helped drive the message on how important it is to be aware of the salt/sodium intake you are consuming on a daily basis. Continue to provide great reads as such. 👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾
@sirwinchester thanks for sharing such an informative post, It's the kind of thing people already know but we don't talk about it or take it seriously. Because of this post, this week i'm watching my salt levels to see what i'm doing because I haven't really been paying attention!
Really good post 👌🏼 I stopped salting my food, except salad, since 2012
Thanks for sharing, that backs up my doctor's recommendation.