SALT—IS IT ALL THAT BAD?
Table salt or common salt is a mineral composed of sodium chloride (NaCl). Salt is present in huge quantities in seawater. The ocean has about 35 grams (1.2 oz) of the mineral per liter, a salinity of 3.5%. Salt is by far the biggest dietary source of sodium. The words salt and sodium are used interchangeably.
We’ve all—and especially us seniors—been told that a high-salt diet is a leading cause of high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke and heart failure. Here is information and advice from a recent Harvard Medical School article, How to avoid the health risks of too much salt:
We need a certain amount of the sodium in salt for the health of all cells and organs, and to maintain a proper fluid balance in the body. Usually, when a person consumes too much sodium, the kidneys efficiently flush the excess sodium out of the body. But some people retain excess sodium. This increases the amount of body fluid and blood pressure, which makes the heart work harder. Persistent high blood pressure increases the risk of developing the artery-blocking plaques of atherosclerosis. For all these reasons, eating too much salt on a regular basis can increase the risk of a heart attack or a stroke. Salt can also negate the effects of many medications to treat high blood pressure, such as diuretics and ACE inhibitors.
So what’s the controversy about? It centers on how much salt is safe for consumption, and it’s still being debated. The American Heart Association recommends a limit of 1,500 milligrams (mg) per day. The FDA recommends a limit of 2,300 mg of sodium per day. The U.S. Dietary guidelines used to recommend a limit of 1,500 mg per day for a wide swath of people (everyone 51 and older, all African Americans, and anyone with high blood pressure, kidney disease, or diabetes), but this year changed it to 1,500 mg per day only for people with high blood pressure, and 2,300 mg for everyone else.
Common sources of sodium
Most of us in the United States are consuming a large amount of sodium, an average of 3,400 mg per day (the amount in about 1½ teaspoons of salt). Where does it come from? Some comes from the saltshaker, and some occurs naturally in foods, such as milk, beets, and celery. “But the majority comes from processed foods, especially any-thing that’s smoked, processed, instant, or cured,” says Debbie Krivitsky, director of clinical nutrition at the Cardiovascular Disease Prevention Center at Massachusetts General Hospital.
Sodium is frequently added during manufacturing, to make food taste good or to act as a preservative or a binder to help yeast rise. Sodium is also hiding in everything from bread to jarred pasta sauce to lunch meats and even breakfast cereals. For example, one cup of Post Grape-Nuts cereal has 540 mg of sodium. Half a cup of Prego traditional tomato sauce has 480 mg of sodium.
Is Salt Actually Bad for You?
However, there is another side to the argument. Here are excerpts from an article in Healthline by Hrefna Palsdottir, MS, titled Salt: Good or Bad?
Health authorities have been telling us to cut back on sodium for decades. They say you should consume no more than 2,300 mg of sodium per day, preferably less. However, about 90% of US adults consume a lot more than that. Eating too much salt is claimed to raise blood pressure, thereby increasing the risk of heart disease and stroke.
Also, there are some serious doubts about the true benefits of sodium restriction. It is true that reducing salt intake can lower blood pressure, especially in people with a medical condition called salt-sensitive hypertension. But, for healthy individuals, the average reduction is very subtle. One study from 2013 found that for individuals with normal blood pressure, restricting salt intake reduced systolic blood pressure by only 2.42 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure by only 1.00 mmHg. These are not exactly the impressive results you would hope to get from enduring a tasteless diet. What’s more, some review studies have found no evidence that limiting salt intake will reduce the risk of heart attacks, strokes or death.
In fact, there have been studies suggesting a low-salt diet can be harmful. The negative effects may include: Elevated LDL (the “bad”) cholesterol; Increased risk of dying from heart disease (with less that 3,000 mg of sodium per day); Heart failure; Insulin resistance; Type 2 diabetes.
Where does our salt come from?
As stated above, most of the salt in the modern diet comes from restaurant foods or packaged, processed foods. In fact, it is estimated that about 77% of the salt in the US diet comes from processed food. Only 23% of the intake occurs naturally in foods or is added during cooking or at the table. If you are trying to cut back, check food labels, as they almost always list the sodium content.
Several observational studies associate high-salt diets with an increased risk of stomach cancer. Also known as gastric cancer, stomach cancer is the fifth most common cancer. A massive review article from 2012, found that people with high salt intake have a 68% higher risk of stomach cancer, compared to those who have a low intake.
Should You Eat Less Salt?
Some health conditions make it necessary to cut back on salt. If your doctor wants you to limit your intake, then definitely continue to do so.
Eating extremely high amounts of salt can be harmful, but eating too little may also be bad for you. Your optimal salt intake probably should be somewhere between the two extremes. If you’re a healthy person who eats mostly whole, single ingredient foods, then there is probably no need for you to worry about your salt intake. In this case, you can feel free to add salt during cooking or at the table in order to improve flavor