James Dowd and Diane Stafford
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 If I ask people about their salt intake, most say they don't add salt to their food or to dishes when they cook. But these same people eat at restaurants three to four nights a week. Because most restaurants serve you about twice the amount of food you can eat, this turns into six to eight meals a week that are probably loaded with salt. To reduce your salt intake, you have to actively avoid the stuff. Read food labels and choose the products with the least amount of salt. Factor in the times you'll be eating out and in others' homes, because that's when you just can't control salt intake. |
Jonny Bowden, Ph.D., C.N.S.
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 In primitive cultures, salt intake is about seven times lower than potassium intake, but in Western industrialized cultures, salt intake is about three times higher than potassium intake.
Can Pumpkins Decrease Your Risk of Stroke?
Consider this: Several large epidemiological studies have suggested that increased potassium intake is associated with decreased risk of stroke. |
James Dowd and Diane Stafford
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| As your salt intake goes up, you lose more and more potassium, magnesium, and calcium in your urine. A chronic high salt intake, combined with this acidosis, leads to increased losses of these minerals in a low-volume, acidic urine. That, in turn, can make you form stones.
The key to kidney stone prevention is drinking plenty of water; balancing the acid-base in your diet; and if your vitamin D level is normal, avoiding excess calcium.
Lowering Your Risk
We estimate that the recommendations in the Vitamin D Cure will lower your risk of arthritis by about 50 percent. |
Andreas Moritz
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 Gancz also pointed out that doctors have long been aware of a link between high salt intake and increased risk of gastric cancer.
It is not clear from the study whether the increased risk of developing stomach ulcers and stomach cancer also applies to the consumption of unprocessed full-spectrum sea salt, versus refined, bleached table salt. If you suffer from a stomach ulcer, try reducing your salt intake, especially if you are a Pitta type (see details about body types in Chapters 5 and 6). |
Ann M. Coulston and Carol J. Boushey
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 Heterogeneous responses to changes in dietary salt intake: the salt-sensitivity paradigm. Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 65(suppl), 612S-617S.
58. Obarzanek, E., et al. (2003). Individual blood pressure responses to changes in salt intake: results from the DASH-Sodium trial. Hypertension 42(4), 459-467.
59. Falkner, B. (1988). Sodium sensitivity: a determinant of essential hypertension. J. Am. Coll. Nutr. 7(1), 35-41.
60. Williams, G. H., and Hollenberg, N. K. (1985). Sodium-sensitive essential hypertension. Emerging insights into pathogenesis and therapeutic implications. |
Dr. Steve Blake
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 In spite of these upper levels, the dietary salt intake in the United States averages 10 grams per day for adult men and seven grams per day for adult women—more than twice the tolerable upper intake levels.
Summary for Sodium
Main functions: maintains blood pressure and fluid balance, assists muscle contraction, and assists nerve impulse transmission.
Adequate Intake: for adults and children, it ranges from 1 to 1.5 grams per day.
Toxicity is rare. Excess intake can increase risk of high blood pressure.
Tolerable upper intake level is set at 3.8 g for adults. Over age 70 it is 3. |
Bill Sardi
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 The research on stomach cancer - done in Japan - was not considered because the nature of the disease and salt intake differs in the Japan and the U.S. The FDA says there is "no credible evidence" supporting green tea as a fighter of other cancers, including lung, gastric, colon, rectal, pancrewho abstain from either substance. This is explained by the fact that males have higher iron loads than females (iron is a growth factor for cancer). The startling finding was that green tea consumption reduced the risk for stomach cancer, even among males who consumed alcohol and smoked tobacco. |
Joan Liebmann-Smith, Ph. D., and Jacqueline Nardi Egan
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 Menstruation, pregnancy, excess salt intake, and certain medications, such as antidepressants and birth control pills, can also cause fluid retention and, of course, bags. Conversely, bags can also be a sign of the dehydration caused by alcohol, so they may be our body's way of telling us that we're drinking too much. Fluid can also accumulate around our eyes while we sleep, which is why we often wake up with puffy eyes.
STOP SIGN
Sleeping with your head elevated may help reduce fluid retention under the eyes. |
Bottom Line Health
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| This study raises some important questions —should postmenopausal women be more concerned about dietary salt intake than men? Would diuretics be more effective in menopausal women than in men?" she asks.
OTC Painkillers Push Blood Pressure Higher
Clarence Grim, MD, professor of clinical medicine, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee.
Gary C. Curhan, MD, associate professor of medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston.
Hypertension. |
Dr. Steve Blake
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| Keeping salt intake below this limit will help older people control blood pressure and decrease their risk of heart disease.
In elderly populations absorption of magnesium may be lower. Also, magnesium losses in urine increase in older people. These factors, coupled with lower intakes, increase the risk of magnesium depletion in the elderly. Adequate magnesium is needed for energy and to lower the risk of cramps and spasms.
Older adults have zinc intakes that tend to be lower than the RDA. |
Marshall Editions
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 Also avoid alcohol and reduce your salt intake, as it can potentially upset the inner ear and aggravate other conditions that can cause dizziness.
Supplements: A good-quality multivitamin will provide basic nutritional support to protect against various nutritional deficiencies associated with dizziness. Follow the instructions on the label. B-complex vitamins can help fulfill the vitamin B deficiencies often found in those that suffer from dizziness. |
Dr. Steve Blake
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| About 10 percent of normal salt intake is from salt added in the kitchen or at the table.
Three-quarters of the salt most people eat is hidden in processed foods.
Most natural foods start out with an abundance of potassium and very little sodium. During food processing, this balance gets reversed. Processed foods contain less potassium and excess sodium. An apple starts with only one milligram of sodium. The same weight of apple pie has 266 mg of sodium, as seen in Figure 8-3.
One teaspoon of salt weighs about five grams, and contains 2000 mg sodium (40 percent sodium). |
Marshall Editions
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| It is *^Pnff important not to decrease salt intake too much, as sodium is an essential mineral. Do not add salt to your food and inspect all food labels to see how much salt the contents contain. Avoid salty snacks such as potato chips, pretzels, salted nuts, and processed and convenience foods. Remember that bread, breakfast cereals, and tinned vegetables can also contain a lot of salt.
Supplements: Magnesium supplements, taken at 1,000 mg a day, may relieve the tinnitus associated with Meniere's disease and protect the ears from resulting damage. |
Jack Challem
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 Therefore, it is best to limit your salt intake, so reject high-sodium foods.
Potassium
Some, but not all, products list the amount of potassium. Potassium is an important nutrient, and it can counter many of the effects of excessive sodium. When the Nutrition Facts indicate that potassium is present, it's a plus. It's even better when the food contains more potassium than sodium.
Total Carbohydrate
Don't let the word total mislead you. This line indicates the total amount of carbs (including sugar) per serving, not in the entire package. |
Marshall Editions
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| NATUROPATHY
Diet: A high salt intake can lead to water retention and may worsen edema. Do not add salt to your food and refrain from eating packaged 2^\Cjrl foods, cold cuts, anchovies, and any other foods high in salt. Eat one to two l££J^ servings of bright-colored foods such as blueberries, cherries, strawberries, and raspberries for their high bioflavonoid vitamin C content. These substances help strengthen the capillaries and improve the immune system. Avoid caffeine, which is found in coffee, carbonated drinks, chocolate, and black tea. |
Dr Ron Roberts
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 Excessive salt intake can also make you feel tired. Reduce the salt in your diet by putting garlic salt or vegetable salt on the table. Experiment with the many tasty salt alternatives now available or use a combination of spices and various herbs to add zest to your cooking. Take time to read the labels on foods and choose reduced-salt, or preferably no-salt, varieties.
Water is as crucial to our existence as air. Water makes up more than half of our body's weight. Our cells are full of water. Water supports all our body's processes. |
Dr. Steve Blake
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| In America today, salt intake is three times higher than potassium intake, as shown in Figure 8-5.
Potassium
(mg of potassium in 100 g of each food)
Sodium
(mg of sodium in 100 g of each food)
459
Peanut Butter Ratio 1.4 to 1
491
Hamburger Ratio 0.4 to 1
592
White Bread Ratio 0.2 to 1
621
Cheddar Cheese Ratio 0.15 to 1
Figure 8-5 Potassium and sodium ratios in some common foods. |
Marshall Editions
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| Eat ^KJl^r foods that are high in potassium such as apples, bananas, asparagus, cabbage, tomatoes, kelp, and alfalfa, and restrict your salt intake by cutting out table salt, smoked meats, cheeses, and packaged foods. Add onions, garlic, and parsley to your food; they have been shown to bring down blood pressure. Celery, which can be blended with cucumber to make a juice, has also been shown to lower blood pressure. |
Dr. Steve Blake
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| For these people, lowering salt intake to the recommended levels is especially important.
To summarize, sodium is a needed nutrient, but most people take in levels high enough to increase the risk of cardiovascular disease. Much of the sodium consumed is hidden in processed food.
Chloride
Chlorine (chemical symbol CI) is a poisonous, greenish-yellow gas in the halogen family of elements. Chlorine is used to disinfect water and is used as bleach. Chlorine combines easily with sodium, hydrogen, and many other elements. |
Andreas Moritz
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| Diuretic drugs, which are used to normalize blood pressure, as well as reduced salt intake, strongly undermine the body's emergency measures to save the little water it has left for normal cellular activities. The resulting stress response causes a further increase in dehydration, and the vicious cycle is complete. Many of the kidney transplants performed today are a result of chronic dehydration, which is caused by something as simple as not drinking enough water, consumption of alcohol, eating foods high in animal protein, or overstimulation of the nervous system. |
| If you suffer from a stomach ulcer, try reducing your salt intake, especially if you are a Pitta type (see details about body types in Chapters 5 and 6).
Defying a Hopeless Prognosis
Jenny was only 25 years old when she came to me with progressive Crohn's disease, a chronic inflammatory condition of the alimentary tract. There was chronic patchy inflammation with edema of the full thickness of the intestinal wall, causing partial obstruction of the lumen. She had been told that her condition was irreversible and would eventually lead to her death. |
Michael Friedman, ND
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 Salt Intake
Moderate
Extremes of salt intake (low or high) appear to worsen insulin resistance.
Nicotine-Containing
Decrease
Use of nicotine-containing products associated with worsening
Products of insulin resistance.
Exercise
Increase
Exercise is critical for preventing and reversing insulin resistance.
Stress
Decrease
Acute stress associated with insulin resistance. Chronic psychosocial stress probable association with insulin resistance.
Magnesium
To correct deficiency
Deficiency likely, but replenishment unlikely to improve insulin resistance. |
| Salt Intake
Moderate
Extremes of salt intake (low or high) appear to worsen insulin resistance.
Nicotine-Containing
Decrease
Use of nicotine-containing products associated with worsening
Products of insulin resistance.
Exercise
Increase
Exercise is critical for preventing and reversing insulin resistance.
Stress
Decrease
Acute stress associated with insulin resistance. Chronic psychosocial stress probable association with insulin resistance.
Magnesium
4.5 g per day
Improved insulin sensitivity. Note: this very high dose would likely act as a cathartic. |
Tori Hudson, N.D.
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 Several dietary factors affect bone health and are involved in the development of osteoporosis: insufficient calcium intake, vitamin D deficiency, low calcium and high phosphorus intake, low fatty acid intake, insufficient dark leafy greens, a high-protein diet, excess salt intake, and excess alcohol. See Chapter 14 for dietary and lifestyle factors, supplements, herbs, hormones, and other conventional medications for prevention and treatment of bone loss.
Foods for Heart Health. Heart disease is the other major concern in the postmenopausal years. |
| Nutrition
Several dietary factors affect bone health and are involved in the development of osteoporosis: insufficient calcium and vitamin D intake, high phosphorus intake, a high animal protein diet, excess salt intake, and other mineral deficiencies. A diet that maximizes consumption of fruits and vegetables and minimizes dietary fats is beneficial for bone development.
Women older than age 65 who do not eat enough and women who practice frequent dieting
• Osteoporosis-related fractures will develop in almost half of all women older than 65. |
| But in those whose blood pressure is very sensitive to salt intake or whose dietary intake of calcium is low, supplementation may be more effective. Calcium has been related to decreases in systolic blood pressure,205' 206 and an analysis of 40 well-controlled studies found that calcium lowers blood pressure measurements. |
Michael Pollan
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 Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) study, a diet rich in fruits and vegetables and low in saturated fat reduced blood pressure even when salt intake and weight remained unchanged. (Lawrence J. Appel, et al., "A Clinical Trial of the Effects of Dietary Patterns on Blood Pressure," New England Journal of Medicine, Vol. 336, No. 16, April 17, 1997.) Neither of these studies relied on food-frequency questionnaires; rather, the researchers prepared the meals for the participants. |
Dr. Steve Blake
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| Excessive salt intake.
(c) Lack of sodium in the diet.
(d) Excessive potassium in the diet.
5. The tolerable upper intake level for sodium intake for men is 3.8 grams. How much sodium does an average American man eat?
(a) Three grams.
(b) Six grams.
(c) Ten grams.
(d) Twelve grams.
6. Dietary lack of potassium can cause:
(a) Sodium deficiency.
(b) Chloride deficiency.
(c) Calcium loss from bones.
(d) Stronger bones.
7. Potassium deficiency is called:
(a) Hypokalemia.
(b) Hyperkalemia.
(c) Hyponatremia.
(d) Hypernatremia.
8. Which type of food has abundant potassium? |
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