It is a good thing when a controversial study is published,and the medical world gets all worked up on it. When the information that we take as a fact is proven not to be one,it makes us question our knowledge,and makes us study more. This is what keeps the scientific researches funded!
It has been “shown”in the past that your salt intake should be carefully monitored to avoid many different long term illnesses,and CVDs where on the top of the list. The whole American Heart association is based on a recommendation that everyone should be taking in less than 1500mg of sodium each day. This is the equivalent of a 1/2 teaspoon!
Depending on your diet and eating habits,this can be impossible to achieve. If you are eating anything that you haven’t prepared,there is a large chance that the amount of salt is already a half of a teaspoon per meal!
Should you be worried though?
Well first of all,studies have shown that it’s not necessarily the amount of salt that you ingest is the problem. An article published in JAMA 2011 showed that type 2 diabetics which had the lowest urinary secrection –in laymans terms lowest amounts in urine –of sodium,had the highest risk rate for CVDs and basically any other disease known to man (1). The effects that an increase of sodium intake had,only increased the systolic blood pressure (the blood pressure when your heart is contracted),and not the diastolic (the pressure when your heart is relaxed). An increase in diastolic pressure has been linked to increase of CVD risk.
The recommendations thus far have been to significantly reduce salt intake for type 2 diabetics,where in fact the studies conducted (2) have recently shown that for diabetics,a moderate increase in salt intake can actually lower blood pressure.
These are individual studies,and there are many other pieces in this puzzle. Your nutritional status plays a huge role in this,as does your activity levels. We all know that when we sweat,we lose minerals,and sodium is one of them. If you are an athlete,it is more important for you to get enough salt,than to try to limit your intake.
High protein diets are also known to increase the need for sodium,and since athletes often are eating more protein to assist with recovery,this might be another factor that should be noted.
What is our take on this?
Studies should be always read with an experienced eye –don’t make guesses unless you can make well educated guesses. The research so far isn’t sufficient to make large changes in the recommendations for the general population,but perhaps we should shift our focus from limiting the amount of our salt intake,to using a non-refined salt with a color. Using this method in choosing the salt you use,you will make sure that you are not getting pure sodium,but also many other important minerals that work in collaboration and don’t have such a negative effect.
1. Fatal and Nonfatal Outcomes,Incidence of Hypertension,and Blood Pressure Changes in Relation to Urinary Sodium Excretion JAMA 2011
2. Dietary Salt Intake and Mortality in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Diabetes Care 2011