Daily Salt Intake - Essential or Dangerious?
Salt consists of the elements sodium and chloride. This applies to all the kinds and forms of our today's food-grade salt, be it crystalline lumps, wet sea salt or refined food-grade salt. There is no kitchen without salt, but in recent years, the mineral has fallen into disrepute: Many consumers are picking up salt shakers only with a bad conscience, as salt is said to be forcing up the blood pressure. Lately, however, experts are giving the all clear to salt: Recent research has proven that only one out of four persons is "sensitive to salt" and, thus, reacts to salt intake with hypertension. However, there is no simple test to find out whether one belongs to this group or not.
The causes for salt sensitivity are still being researched. It is probably in the genes. What is certain, though: In many people, salt intake does not have any impact at all on blood pressure. Rather more relevant risk factors for hypertension are overweight, stress, smoking, diabetes, wrong nutrition and lack of excercise. On the contrary: Probably a lack of salt intake is causing more health problems than a surplus. This concerns in particular the elderly: Often, they are drinking too little, or prefer tea and mineral water with reduced sodium content. If this behaviour coincides with side effects caused by medicines, or also with a slight diarrhea, blood salt levels are sinking quickly, increasing the risk of a circulatory collapse.
Salt is important for many body functions: It is vital for the conductivity of our nerve tracts, enabling the transfer of impulses from our brain e.g. to muscles. Moreover, muscle contraction does not work without salt. All our organs also need salt, e.g. the stomach where salt is regulating digestion by absorbing part of the gastric acid. Excess salt is simply excreted via the kidneys.
Thus, the conclusion is: People suffering from hypertension do not necessarily have to follow strict low-salt diets. At table, however, they had better not add salt to their meals - apart from adding a bit of salt to their eggs and jacket potatoes. In case of loss of salt, e.g. when sweating heavily or when suffering from diarrhoe and/or vomiting, the salt depots of our body have to be "refilled". The average daily salt need is approximately 6 g (about one tablespoon). Important: Approximately 20 per cent only of the daily salt intake is covered by the deliberate addition of salt to our meals. Most of it is contained already in our food, e.g. half of the daily share comes in bread, cakes and pastries, and meat products and sausages also contain much salt.
Free translation made by esco, original German text by Susanne Faß, 30.09.2007
The original German text describes the contents of a TV transmission of 27 September, 2007.
Possible later changes to the facts are not reflected.
Original German text to be found at: http://www.rbb-online.de/_/ratgebergesundheit/beitrag_jsp/key=6478649.html
