“There is no longer any valid basis for the current salt guidelines,” said Andrew Mente, a professor at McMaster University in Ontario and one of the researchers involved in a major study published last year by the New England Journal of Medicine. “So why are we still scaring people about salt?”
Twenty years ago I was diagnosed with hypertension. One of the first things I asked my doctor was whether or not I should eliminate salt from my diet. She said not to worry, that salt had little to do with the condition unless one ate copious amounts of salt on a daily basis. Over the years I have asked the same question of 3 other doctors and all have given me the same response.
why is this even an issue?? If you need more salt in your diet you have many ways of getting it in our current dietary market. Less salt is still good advice.
“Less salt is still good advice.”
No it isn’t. I speak as someone who has seen the list of people who passed out at a famous hot springs and whose young wife was one of the victims of the “less salt is good advice” trope when we were staying there celebrating our 1 year wedding anniversary.
“So why are we still scaring people about salt?”
“We” aren’t. The people who were wrong about it can’t admit they are wrong. They are the same people who are wrong about consuming animal fats and Global Warming. These wrong people have an agenda and admitting they were wrong will have some strong legal repercussions as well as eroding their credibility politically.
They have hurt and even killed people with their wrong position on these issues.
I have problems with gout whenever I get dehydrated, and tend to have severe blood pressure drops exercising in heat. I am going to try increasing my salt intake to increase the fluid volume of my blood.
I love the “still good advice” line. I guess it just goes to show you that if you repeat a lie often enough, it becomes the truth.
Well said.
Beefaholic, same here, and in fact my wife needs a certain amount of salt in her diet or she has adverse reactions because of Meniers (ear issues in one ear).
I hate food lack of salt in right amount not too salty not without it. Some people must reduce of salt intake due to may heart stroke or diabtee or liver or kidney problems. Washing teath by salt once a week better than mouthwash my dentist told me. I was see article about age life extended like some all season green trees like christmass trees live longer than small flower trees. Body of human chemical intake vitamin need change by age. If enzyme can able cell reporduction done skin stay younger reason of early death that cell in body die or not repait itself fast enough you can see adam and nohah prophet lived 950 years must did something it can possible. Everything can possible.
Low sodium is still necessary for heart failure patients. If you are a caregiver for one of these you quickly learn through experience that ” normal ” levels of salt are horrible for the patients wellbeing. Generally speaking you can only avoid it by cooking a great number of goods you would normally buy prepared, such as bread.
The story behind the scare. Has much in common with global warming and second hand smoke. Page two was interesting.
http://www.health-report.co.uk/sodium_chloride_salt_myths1.html
This’ll be bad news for the producers of that phonie nutrion and health freak magazine PREVENTION and most doctors dont even recomend a totaly salt-free diet
Salt is bad for you…oh wait.
Cholesterol eggs, red fatty meat is bad for you…oh wait.
Gluten/carbohydrates are bad for you…oh wait.
For the general public none of these things are bad for us. Notice the one group that’s fighting for continued dietary level recommendations? The American Heart Association. Groups like that get their teeth into such an orthodoxy and will worry it to death not letting go. Just like the Canadian Lung Association that’s taking on the e-cig’s and vaping as just as bad as analogs. Don’t fight the orthodoxy directly. Just ignore them and do your own thing.
That being said, I do know people that have issues with too much salt. Special cases thought and usually a family trait.
“Less salt is still good advice.”
Again, no it isn’t.
Several studies show greater longevity with greater salt intake, exceeding a teaspoon per day. However, people eating excess insulin-stimulating foods and fructose will likely develop hypertension. Reducing salt is one way to try to manage this hypertension; reducing water is another. They both make as much sense. Reducing salt will shorten your life. Life’s full of tough choices.
My mother spent much of her lifetime preaching about salt and never had a saltshaker generally available. All went well until the doctor told her she was seriously short of salt.
Remember this ?
http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2013/02/11/bloomberg-praises-companies-for-success-in-sodium-reduction-initiative/
Professional busybodies are still stuck on stupid. Any evidence contrary to their preconceived notions are always blissfully ignored. They generally put far too much effort into social engineering that when it turns out they were wrong there is no way in hell they’ll admit that. The fallacy just quietly moves into the background and gradually disappears. Activists just change horses and continue to ride. The media will quietly pick up the new cause because admitting the old cause was wrong would make them look like they weren’t doing their job of investigating both sides of the story. Sure sounds familiar on so many topics. When scientists turn into activists we get a lot of that. It seems they have learned that there is far more grant money in gloom and doom predictions than there is in the boring truth. All is OK is the quickest way to watch your funding dry up. Panic pays. Continuous panic pays the best. Future panic is like tenure.