Sodium. We all know about it and we’ve allheard we eat too much of it; but what, really, is
sodium? And why does it matter if we eat toomuch of it? Well, for one, sodium, plain and
simple, is necessary for the body to function toproperly. It plays a vital role in water balance,nerve function, and a whole array of various
physiological functions that are of the utmostsignificance to our health. That said, we reallyonly need a small amount—500 mg, in fact. To
put that into perspective, you can get your dailyamount of sodium from a serving of chips,
crackers, canned food items, pickles, cheeses,pretzels, or even salted nuts. Even condimentslike ketchup and salad dressings are packed to
the brim with sodium.
Considering we get ourdaily intake from
something as simple as abag of pretzels, it is easy to
see how so manyAmericans are consuming
far too much sodium (like 4to 5k on a daily basis); andwe only need 500mg! Even
being conservative, thatmeans the majority ofAmerican adults are
processing 8 times moresodium than they should
be.
What’s really intriguingabout all of this is the fact
that salt is actually anincredibly addictive
substance. So it makessense that big food
manufacturers would pumpthe stuff into their products.
They want you to keepcoming back. They don’t
care about your expandingwaistline, only their
expanding pocketbook.
Additionally, aFinnish study thatwas published in2006 concluded
that there is aclear-cut link
correlation saltintake and obesity.From the 1980s to
the mid-1990s,Americans’ salt
intake increasedtremendously bymore than 50%.
When a man orwoman has a high
blood pressurereading of 140/85,their blood beginscoagulating into a
sort of salty sludge.Then, in reaction,
their body will startdumping extra water
into theirbloodstream which
results in theexpansion of bloodvessels—indicating
any number ofpotentially fatal
problems.
Well, now that I’ve established toomuch sodium is awful for you, here’s
what you can do to mitigate theeffects:
Consumer fewer processed foods
Choose fresh or frozen veggies, not canned
Purchase fresh meats, not canned, cured or smoked
Ask about unsalted meals at restaurants
Opt for low sodium versions of soups and snacks
Choose foods that don’t list salt or sodium in the first five ingredients
Use a salt-free herbal blend instead of a traditional salt shaker
Good luck, Godspeed, and stay healthy! Cheers!
Top Related