Is too much salt really bad for you? Mainstream medical advice and regular doctor visits may have convinced you that this is a definite “yes”, but the science is not uniform. Is it not reflected in medical treatment?
The salt controversy doesn’t just raise the question of how much salt is too much. It points to the heart of an issue that is rarely discussed. In other words, despite the decisive and assured tone of important opinion statements involving physicians, much of the medical information we receive is not based on scientific consensus.
We’re all getting the message that we tend to eat “too much” salt. Doctors, nutritionists, and health associations have long warned that excess sodium intake can interfere with kidney function, raise blood pressure, increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, and even impair sleep quality. rice field.
Recognizing that processed foods are the primary source of sodium for most people, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will encourage processed food manufacturers to reduce added salt in their products in October 2021. announced a new plan. The FDA has set a new target for his average salt intake of 3,000 milligrams per day. That’s a 12% reduction from the US average of about 3,400 milligrams per day.
However, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans developed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Agriculture recommends that adults limit their sodium intake to less than 2,300 milligrams per day, or about 1 teaspoon of salt. Recommended.
Recent studies in animals have revealed that excess salt can affect not only the body, but also the mind. Several studies have shown that too much salt can increase stress levels and affect behavior (at least in mice).
new research
One such recent study, conducted at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland and published this month in the Journal of Cardiovascular Research, found in mice that a diet high in salt elevates stress hormones in the body.
The researchers found that a high-salt diet increased levels of the stress hormone glucocorticoids by 75%. , was twice as high in mice following a normal diet.
“We know that too much salt can damage the heart, blood vessels, and kidneys. This study shows that a diet high in salt also changes the way the brain deals with stress.” said study co-author Matthew A. Bailey, a professor of renal physiology at the Center for Cardiovascular Sciences at the University of Edinburgh, in a statement.
A paper published this year in the journal Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews examined a number of studies to quantify what is known about the effects of salt on animal behavior.
The authors of a review from Kent State University in Kent, Ohio, noted that while excessive salt intake is a well-known risk factor for cardiovascular disease, until now, “despite its ubiquity in daily life, , but little research has been done on how it affects behavior.” modern diet. “
In this study, we tested behavioral changes such as anxiety and aggression in mice fed a high-salt diet. Spatial memory and ‘fear expression’ were found to be affected when animals ingested excess salt during adulthood. High salt intake during childhood was shown to increase locomotion and interfere with social and spatial behavior.
The study’s authors wrote that these findings indicate that “extended studies of salt effects are likely to reveal broader behavioral effects.”
Is Salt Really Bad?
Doctor of Pharmacy James DiNicolatonio opposes what he calls the “low-salt doctrine”, believing that salt is unfairly demonized.
He recommends that our bodies consume about 3,000 to 4,000 milligrams of sodium per day in order to maintain homeostasis, “the optimum state of least stress on the body.” It claims to be driving
DiNicolantonio told The Epoch Times that all humans have “inherent flaws” in a salt intake study done on humans.
“Nearly all studies have not fed the exact same diets, differing only in the level of salt intake.” [researchers] do they give more fruits and vegetables, [a diet] It’s kind of like estimating the benefits of something that happens to be low in salt…and you can’t necessarily estimate it. “
In his book The Salt Fix: Why Experts Got It All Wrong and How Eat More Might Save Your Life, DiNicolantonio, a cardiovascular researcher at St. Luke’s Middle American Heart Institute in Kansas City, Missouri, states: No need to monitor our salt intake. He believes that sodium restriction is harmful and that too little salt leads to sugar cravings, weight gain and type 2 diabetes.
In fact, a low-salt diet may have caused the epidemic of hypertension in the United States, writes DiNicolantonio. I do have a very low rate of heart disease and high blood pressure.
According to DiNicolatonio, for most people, consuming more salt improves energy, sleep, fitness, and even fertility and sexual function. Until then, we’ll be stuck in this same perpetual loop of keeping our bodies starved of salt, addicted to sugar, and ultimately deficient in many important nutrients.”
For animals, “Of course, there are no dietary guidelines. There are no medical instructions to create a conscious effort to limit salt intake.” said that we shouldn’t worry about “too much salt” because our bodies will take care of the excess. ,” he writes.
ongoing controversy
In 2016, researchers from Columbia University and Boston University conducted a “meta-knowledge analysis” of what they called the “salt controversy.” We examined 269 reports that examined the effects of sodium intake on cerebrovascular disease or mortality, published during the 1990s.
The researchers found that 54% of the reports supported the hypothesis that reducing dietary salt would lead to health benefits for the population. A third (33%) did not support this hypothesis and 13% were inconclusive.
So while scientists have long disagreed about the benefits of reducing salt intake, public health messages about salt don’t appear to reflect this uncertainty, researchers say. points out.
“The gap between the uncertainty in the scientific literature regarding the potential benefits of salt reduction in populations and the conviction expressed by decision makers involved in formulating public health policy in this area is jarring.” they are writing
“Assuming that all parties have the best interests of science and public health in mind, this controversy is about the production of knowledge in population health science and how that production affects public health practice. I question about.”
Researchers found that report authors were 50% more likely to cite papers that reflected their point of view, regardless of whether they believed that reducing salt intake was beneficial. Moreover, only a few prolific researchers have done most of the work in this area and seemed immune to the work of researchers who reached different conclusions.
“There is little evidence of ongoing controversy in the published literature, but rather two largely distinct and distinct disciplines, one that supports and one that contradicts the hypothesis that reducing salt intake in the population improves clinical outcomes. were found to contain,” the authors write.
Rather than admit that there have long been two “sides” to the salt controversy, public health officials seem to have chosen to expand on the results of only some of the body of research that has been produced on the topic.
practical advice
Di Nicolantonio provided practical advice for those concerned about their salt intake.
“People who eat whole foods, which are mostly nutritious whole foods such as meat, vegetables and fruits, will be getting very little salt and probably need to add more salt. Go back some to bring back to,” he said.
“On the other hand, if you’re someone who eats mostly processed foods…you’re probably already getting enough salt.
“Salt is an essential mineral. It’s like the amount, it’s not high or low, but it basically treats water thirst by allowing the body to consume the salt it needs.”
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Susan C. Olmstead writes about health and medicine, food, social issues, culture, and children’s literature. Her work has appeared in The Epoch Times, The Defender, Salvo Magazine and many other publications. She lives in northern Ohio on the shores of Lake Erie.
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