 Increased Salt Consumption can help with the following: | |  | | | Circulation |  Hypotension | Consuming a diet higher in salt will sometimes help restore a more normal blood pressure. One of the most common - and treatable - problems identified in those with NMH (Neurally Mediated Hypotension) is a low dietary salt (sodium) intake. Salt helps us retain fluid in the blood vessels, and helps maintain a healthy blood pressure. Salt has received bad press in the last couple of decades because a high salt diet in some individuals with high or high-normal blood pressure can contribute to further elevations, and thereby to heart disease and stroke. This has led to general health recommendations to cut down on salt. As we are finding, this general recommendation isn’t right for all people.
Consume extra salt and drink more fluids during hot weather and while sick with a viral illness, such as a cold or the flu. |
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Environment / Toxicity |
 Heat Exhaustion| | Most commerical sports drinks have modest sodium content in order to make them more palatable. A person exercising in heat needs as much as 2gm of sodium per liter for proper recovery - which would make sports drinks taste like seawater (there is about 0.5gm of sodium per liter of Gatorade). Drinking large amounts of plain water is not ideal in itself because it shuts off the sense of thirst and produces more urine which results in further fluid loss even though you are dehydrated.
You can increase your sodium intake by eating sodium-containing foods. Some people believe that table salt (sodium chloride, NaCl) is not a good way to get your sodium (note that there is 1gm of sodium in every 2.5gm of table salt), but others say that it is necessary. |
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Hormones |
Low Adrenal Function / Adrenal Insufficiency| | Sea salt should be included in the diet, unless contraindicated for other reasons, as it benefits adrenal gland function. When seasoning foods, use as much salt as tastes good to you. |
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Metabolic |
Hyponatremia (Low Blood Sodium Level)| | The concentration of sodium in the blood plasma depends on the total amount of sodium and water in the circulatory system. Hyponatremia, can be corrected either by increasing sodium or by decreasing body water. |
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Nutrients |
Salt Intake Requirement |
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KEY | | Likely to help | | | Highly recommended |
GLOSSARY
Adrenal (Adrenal Gland, Adrenal Glands, Adrenals)
The adrenal glands sit on top of each kidney and consist of an outer cortex and an inner medulla. Of the 50 or so hormones the adrenals make, only cortisone and adrenaline are recognized by most people. Some of these hormones must be produced to preserve life, while others help resist stress. Other hormones from the adrenals control normal energy output (along with the thyroid) and govern the breakdown of stored energy into quick energy sources. The medulla produces epinephrine and norepinephrine, which are specifically designed to help the body deal with stressful situations. The adrenals control the body's potassium/sodium balance, which is vital for energy production. They also produce sex hormones in minute amounts, which is important for later years when the gonads drop or cease their production.
Gram (gm, gms, Gramme, Grammes, Grams)
A metric unit of weight, there being approximately 28 grams in one ounce.
Hypotension
Low blood pressure.
Liter (Liters, Litre, Litres)
A metric measure of volume equivalent to 1.057 liquid quarts or 0.2642 gallons.
Sodium
An essential mineral that our bodies regulate and conserve. Excess sodium retention increases the fluid volume (edema) and low sodium leads to less fluid and relative dehydration. The adult body averages a total content of over 100 grams of sodium, of which a surprising one-third is in bone. A small amount of sodium does get into cell interiors, but this represents only about ten percent of the body content. The remaining 57 percent or so of the body sodium content is in the fluid immediately surrounding the cells, where it is the major cation (positive ion). The role of sodium in the extracellular fluid is maintaining osmotic equilibrium (the proper difference in ions dissolved in the fluids inside and outside the cell) and extracellular fluid volume. Sodium is also involved in nerve impulse transmission, muscle tone and nutrient transport. All of these functions are interrelated with potassium.
Stroke (Stroke-Type Event)
A sudden loss of brain function caused by a blockage or rupture of a blood vessel that supplies the brain, characterized by loss of muscular control, complete or partial loss of sensation or consciousness, dizziness, slurred speech, or other symptoms that vary with the extent and severity of the damage to the brain. The most common manifestation is some degree of paralysis, but small strokes may occur without symptoms. Usually caused by arteriosclerosis, it often results in brain damage.
Last updated: May 18, 2008
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