Is Salt Bad for Me?

by ryan heeney / february 7th, 2024

salt-2-191031-800x450.jpg

Sodium does so many beneficial things in the body it should be considered a health supplement in itself. It helps reduce inflammation, improves sleep, increases metabolism and let's be honest... makes food taste great. “Salt” is made up of sodium and chloride, and while sodium is what we will be interested in this article, I will be using salt and sodium interchangeably for the most part.

Sodium is a mineral that is vital to our body and to our cells. While special circumstances may exist where some may need to follow a low sodium diet for health reasons, these circumstances are rare and anyone looking to be and feel healthier will benefit from adequate levels of sodium in the diet. 

Researcher Danny Roddy summarizes the protective effects of sodium here:

"Sodium is an integral factor in reducing stress, absorbing magnesium, increasing insulin sensitivity, maintaining serum albumin (binds estrogen and other toxins until they are eliminated by the liver), and reducing serotonin. A lack of sodium can lead to the chronic activation of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS), which suppresses the metabolic rate and promotes inflammation. Adequate salt intake can increase body temperature and decreases aldosterone, adrenaline, and angiotensin. Additional salt in the diet may result in swelling for a few days while the body adjusts. If swelling does not decrease (puffy face in the morning), it may indicate elevated estrogen or that the metabolic rate is still suppressed."

From my own experience, reintroducing normal levels of sodium into my diet warmed my hands and feet which would typically be chronically cold. This was such a huge improvement for me and made me realize my mistake in trying to reduce it in my diet. Adding in salt also improved my mood and improved my sleep. Salty foods seem to help calm feelings of anxiety at night time, this is most likely due to sodium's ability to decrease adrenaline.

What about sodium's effect on blood pressure?

The mainstream health community slams salt for it's negative effect on blood pressure, but I think this is another big mistake when giving health advice.

While the explanation is quite detailed and lengthy, Kate Deering breaks it down terrifically in her book, "How to Heal Your Metabolism". If you would like to skip all the technical stuff in the following section, I highlighted the main points in bold throughout the excerpt and will summarize further afterwords:

"To really understand the role of salt in the body and its effects on blood pressure, you have to first understand the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS).  The RAAS is a hormonal system that controls blood pressure and water balance in your body.

Three different triggers, all of which bring about the same result -- raising your blood pressure--turns on the RAAS system. 

These triggers are:

1. Low blood pressure.  This usually means blood pressure below 90/60.  Low blood pressure will contribute to a colder body.

2. Activation of your sympathetic nervous system (adrenaline, cortisol, prolactin, serotonin, growth hormone, and melatonin).  This is your flight or fight system that is activated by physical, emotional, and mental stress.

3. Low salt. (please take note of this.)

When your blood pressure is low, you have too little salt or you get "stressed out", your body signals renin from your kidneys to be released into circulation.  Renin helps convert angiotensinogen, released by the liver, into angiotensis I.  Angiotensis I is then converted into angiotensis II by an enzyme found in the lungs called angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE).  Angiotensin II is the active hormone in this process.

Angiotensin II (A2) is a very powerful vasoconstrictor causing four main things to occur in the body that will increase blood pressure.  A2 signals:

1. The arteries in the body to constrict, increasing blood pressure.

2. The pituitary gland to release antidiuretic-hormone (ADH), which tells the body to increase water absorption.  This will increase stroke volume (the volume of the blood pumped from one ventricle of the heart with each beat), which leads to higher blood pressure.

3. The kidneys to directly reabsorb sodium.  Increased sodium in the blood will drive more water into the blood and, thus, increase blood pressure.

4. The adrenals to release the hormone aldosterone.  Aldosterone increases sodium absorption into the blood and cells, and releases potassium into the urine.  Water will follow sodium (Na) into the blood and cells; this increases not only blood pressure but also water retention in the cells (i.e., edema).

Now let's take a step back and notice a very important statement I made a few paragraphs ago:  Low blood pressure, stress, and low salt trigger the RAAS system to turn on.  High salt does not.

Sodium is involved in increasing blood pressure, but in most cases it is not the reason blood pressure increases.  It is just part of a system that helps regulate blood pressure.

We keep putting all the blame on salt, but more than likely salt is not the cause of the increased blood pressure. Salt retention and increased blood pressure are just results that occur from a system that has become overworked and over-stressed. The RAAS hormonal system is a self-regulated, negative feedback system. This means that once it has done it's job --raising your blood pressure--the RAAS will self correct and auto-regulate back to normal. Our body holds on to salt to increase blood pressure when needed; this is a survival technique.  Think about it: When you are stressed, you can feel your blood pressure rise. Your body has more nutritional needs so your blood has to circulate more vitamins, minerals, sugars, proteins, and fats to all your body parts. Once your stress has gone away, your blood pressure returns to normal.  Problems start occurring when we over-stress our bodies and the RAAS system doesn't turn off.  This dysfunction, not salt itself, is what leads to constricted arteries, increased water and sodium retention, hypertension and quite possibly a heart attack.

Basically, salt is the victim of being at the wrong place at the wrong time, and thus gets all the blame for increased blood pressure.

Salt retention and increased blood pressure are the results that occur from a system that has become overworked and over-stressed."

If you would like to delve even further into the science and a further explanation of sodium’s benefits and the roles it plays in the body, Dr. Ray Peat, who has his PhD in Biology, explains it wonderfully in his article http://raypeat.com/articles/articles/salt.shtml.

How much salt should I be eating?  How can I put this information to use?

My best advice on this is fairly simple: Eat salt to taste.

As general and vague as that advice sounds, the body's mechanisms for things like cravings are anything but vague. The body has very delicate taste and thirst mechanisms to indicate needs for certain nutrients. I wouldn't over-salt after learning of the benefits of sodium, but would just salt your food exactly how you like it.

If I can rant for a moment… when deciding to eat and live better, it should never be an uphill battle.  This process should be easy and enjoyable, instead of painful. Something as small as being told you can have salt as you please can make such a difference when adopting a newer, healthier lifestyle.  Within the framework of foods we are meant to eat, all of our cravings can be met. It does not need to be torturous. It can be quite enjoyable, actually. Trainers and nutritionists seem to have a desire to put their clients through a painful boot camp like experience and I believe that does nothing but harm a person’s idea of what health is.

Also, if you plan to increase your salt intake, do so slowly. Your body and kidneys will need some time to adapt to an increased sodium intake. Adding too much salt too fast could cause water retention, weight gain, and bloating but that will subside once your body adjusts.

As with any health or dietary change, consult with your health care provider first. While these health recommendations can be useful to most, special circumstances do exist and must be taken into account when implementing any new dietary changes.

To finish off the article, I felt Thomas DeLauer did a decent job highlighting some of the benefits of having adequate levels of salt in the diet.

The only critiques I would have with what Thomas says is his “best source of salt”. The best salt you can probably get is probably Morton’s Canning and Pickling salt. It’s just plain old salt and has no anti-caking ingredients have been added for easy of use but can sometimes cause gut irritation. Some of these anti-caking ingredients can also allergenic. Himalayan sea salts and the like can look fancy and interesting but most contain a lot of metals and unwanted substances. While they may appear healthier, good old pure, clean salt will be your best option.

Calendar Block
This is an example. Double-click here and select a page to create a calendar of your own content. Learn more