You should not completely abandon salt.
Many nutritionists recommend eating salt-free foods and eliminating this substance from the diet. But in fact, it would be safe for health to give up white crystals, reports with reference to.
Researcher James DiNicolantonio of the St. Luke Heart Institute in Kansas City has been studying the effects of salt on the human body for the past 10 years. He argues that avoiding salt can do more harm than good.
Why low-salt diets are bad for you
Many doctors claim that salt intake is the cause of many diseases, including high blood pressure, heart disease, and kidney disease. However, researchers are increasingly trying to dispel myths about the negative effects of salt on the body.
Early in his career, James DiNicolantonio faced the negative effects of a low sodium diet. Patients with high blood pressure who gave up salt reported dizziness, dehydration, and fast heartbeats. Then the specialist advised them to add this seasoning to food in order to restore sodium levels.
The fact is that our body has been adapting to the absorption of salt over a long period. This substance has been the main preservative and flavor enhancer for centuries. With salt, the body receives the necessary sodium, which ensures the correct balance of fluids in the cells, the work of the cardiovascular system, muscle contraction and the regulation of nerve impulses.
A lot of studies have been carried out on the effect of salt on the body and it was found that reducing the intake of this substance actually lowers blood pressure, but the indicator drops by a maximum of 1 to 5 points and only in a small part of people. At the same time, there are many negative consequences: an increase in the level of renal hormones, stress hormones and triglycerides, an increase in heart rate, hypothyroidism and increased insulin. In addition, the death rate was much higher in people with low sodium levels than in those with high.
The study also shows how a low sodium diet affects pregnant women. The results suggest that this increases the risk of miscarriage, infant mortality and preeclampsia.