Is Salt Bad for You?

Since the 1980s, salt has played a villain to our health and wellness. Simply, salt will increase blood pressure and chronic high blood pressure can lead to more serious and potentially fatal cardiac events (stroke, heart attack, etc.). Because heart disease and stroke account for 40% of all deaths in the United States, finding a way to lower the risk of heart disease and stroke is extremely valuable in prolonging life expectancy. Unfortunately, the villains were salt and saturated fat. In the last 20 years, saturated fat has made a comeback in many more natural forms; however, if you ask most people about salt, they will say it is not good for heart health. 

Like saturated fat, our bodies NEED salt. The Sodium-Potassium pump is vital for proper fluid balance within our cells all throughout the body. We all know the importance of hydration- without Sodium and Potassium, we cannot fully hydrate our body. Commonly, clients come into REV drinking a gallon or more of water and under consuming sodium, potassium, and other essential electrolytes. 

Electrolytes are essential for our bodily function but for now we are going to focus on sodium. Sodium is essential for proper brain function, which explains why the brain craves it and salt is a primary taste. The human brain is really good at giving us warning signs to make sure we stay alive, and we would die without salt. Many people crave sugar when they actually need salt, but more on that later. 

The short answer to the primary question is, ‘NO SALT IS NOT BAD FOR YOU’. But the following warning should be taken into consideration.

WARNING:
-You need to know your blood pressure.
-If you have high blood pressure or are at high risk of cardiovascular disease, significant increases in sodium consumption CAN cause serious health complications.
-If you have high blood pressure, please consult your Primary Care Physician before making drastic changes to your sodium intake.
-If you have normal or low blood pressure, you are safe to experiment with increasing sodium.

Now that the warning about heart health has been given, how much sodium is safe to consume? The Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) for sodium in the United States is 2300mg (2.3g). Due to the Standard American Diet consisting of mostly processed foods loaded with sodium, MANY people exceed the RDA, and is average consumption is around 3300mg.

But how much sodium is safe to consume? Research has shown a very interesting inverse bell curve showing adverse effects with TOO LITTLE and TOO MUCH sodium intake. In the graph below, notice the lowest risk of a negative incident due to sodium intake occurs at around 5g (5,000mg) of sodium per day. Based on the research, the SAFEST RANGE of sodium intake is between 4-5.99g of per day. 

So IF you have normal to below normal blood pressure, it’s SAFE to have 4,000mg-6,000mg of sodium a day. The safe range of 4,000mg-6,000mg is is 2X what the FDA recommends for the “Recommended Daily Allowance.”

Click HERE if you want more information on safe levels of sodium.

Photo Credit LMNT

So if you are reading this and are health conscious and eat a diet with minimally processed foods, it is likely that you fall below the “average” sodium intake of 3,300mg. If you are active with exercise or outside sweating, you are losing electrolytes without properly replenishing your body and NEED to replenish electrolytes.

A few things to keep in mind:

-It is important to know that 1g of Salt does not equal 1g of Sodium.
-Salt comes in many forms, including the following: 
-Table salt = sodium chloride and added iodine. 
-Sea Salt = sodium chloride plus trace amounts of other minerals (calcium, potassium, magnesium)
-Pink Himalayan Salt- sodium chloride (although less) plus other trace minerals (iron, calcium, potassium, magnesium)

1g of Table Salt = 388 mg of Sodium

Before we go into recommendations on how to safely increase sodium intake, let’s go through the top five scenarios in day-to-day life that indicate that a need to increase sodium consumption (if you do not meet the warning listed above). If you find yourself in multiple of these scenarios, you definitely should increase your sodium. 

Top 5 Times You NEED sodium:

1. Low Blood Pressure
Sodium will increase blood pressure. If you have orthostatic hypotension or low blood pressure, your body will perform better with >4g of sodium daily.

2. Consume Caffeine
Caffeine is a diuretic that causes you to excrete water and decreases your overall hydration. For every 1 oz of coffee, you should have 1.5 oz of water. Adding a pinch of salt will help you absorb water and rehydrate after that morning cup of coffee.

3. High Intense Exercise/Sweating
If you sweat a lot, you can see the salt that our body excretes in sweat. Most times it ends up on our clothing. With exercise, we can lose one pound or more of sweat per hour. Andrew Huberman recently referenced an equation for how much fluid you need to replenish with exercise:

Body Weight (lbs.)/30= Fluid Oz needed per 15 min of exercise.
Example- 200 lb. person/30= 7 oz per 15 min of exercise 
13 oz per 30 min of exercise
20 oz per 45 min of exercise
27 oz per 60 minutes of exercise

Clearly, these are estimates but the key takeaway is that you do not need a gallon of water because you went to a workout class. What you NEED is electrolytes with your water to properly hydrate.

4. Eat a Low Carbohydrate Diet
Keto and lower carb diets have helped many maintain good body weight. Without carbohydrates, our body pulls more water from our gut and we excrete more. If you do not eat many carbs, you will have more energy-consuming electrolytes.

5. Fasted or Follow a Restricted Eating Window
Similar to low-carb diets, fasting pulls fluid out of our gut to maintain proper body functioning. If you fast, you will have more energy taking electrolytes. 

So the million-dollar question is, ‘how much sodium should YOU consume? To start, identify how much sodium you are consuming based on how much processed and packaged food you consume and if you have a craving of salt. Evaluate how much sodium you need based on your blood pressure and the five scenarios listed above. From there, start to add sodium to your normal water intake and see how you feel. Most people actually have more energy and do not need to consume as much water as they were previously. For reference, here are some examples of how much sodium you consume per measurement:

Pinch of Table Salt- 150mg sodium
¼ Teaspoon of Table Salt- 575mg sodium
½ Teaspoon of Table Salt- 1150mg sodium

Does every person in the United States need to add more sodium? Of course not, BUT active, health-conscious people need more sodium to feel and perform better. If that is you, start adding a pinch of sodium to your morning and afternoon water consumption, and if you are fasting add more.

After your next big workout, add in ½ teaspoon of salt to help replenish your electrolytes and hydrate and see how you feel. Like most nutritional advice, every person is different depending on the scenario and it will take experimenting to find the right balance. Many REV clients say that adding salt to their hydration they aren’t as thirsty and consume less water, make fewer trips to the bathroom, and have more energy.

Another option is to start taking an electrolyte supplement that has a balance of Sodium, Potassium, Magnesium, and Calcium. The best one on the market is LMNT, and you can try a Variety Pack to see what flavor you like most HERE

Are you dealing with chronic muscle cramps, tendonitis, or muscle strains? Your tissues may be chronically dehydrated and need to be properly rehabilitated and rehydrated to get back to the things you love. If that sounds like you, set up a Free Discovery Call so we can determine if we can help and put a plan together to resolve your issue for good. 

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Dr. Ryan