10 Myths About Salt Debunked

假的。Salt is essential for life. It's a major component of your blood, it helps carry nutrients into and out of your cells, regulates blood pressure and plays a role in nervous-system function. We need salt—just not too much or too little. The amount of salt that is right for you depends on your salt sensitivity (see #3).

假的。Most of us are either salt sensitive or salt resistant. Your level of salt sensitivity or resistance is determined by many factors, including genetics, race/ethnicity, age, body size and general diet.Salt sensitivityis defined as when a person's blood pressure changes significantly from increasing or decreasing salt in the diet. Older people, overweight people, women,African-AmericansandSouth Asiansare examples of groups that are known to have greater salt sensitivity.

The issue of salt sensitivity underlies the reason that many studies show conflicting results about the impact of sodium on health for the general population. Some people don't experience changes in blood pressure or water retention when eating salt and others do, depending on their salt sensitivity. Most studies tend to report averages but ultimately it's the salt-sensitive people who should be most concerned about sodium intake.

How can you tell if you are salt sensitive? There's no easy medical test for salt sensitivity, but if you can, watch out forcertain symptoms. In general, eating a healthy diet low in processed foods, high in fruits and vegetables, and lots of home-cooked meals, is a safe bet for everyone.

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假的。大多数的钠摄入量来自公关ocessed foods, not the amount of salt you add in cooking or at the table. And no one needs lots of processed foods in their diet! Processed meats, canned soups, tomato and pasta sauces, bouillon, breads, crackers with salted toppings, and just about anything that comes prepared is high in sodium. If you do eat processed foods, look for lower-sodium soups and sauces available in many stores.

假的。Herbs, spices, garlic, onion, lemon and lime juice, red and black pepper can all add flavor to your dishes so that you don't need to depend totally on salt for flavor. Actually, adding salt into your home-cooked meals has a much smaller impact than eating lots of processed and prepared foods, which are much higher in sodium.

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True. Some people like to add hot sauce to their food instead of salt on the premise that they ingesting less sodium that way. Hot sauces, salsa, ketchup and other similar sauces can add a peppery flavor to your foods, but many of these still contain excess salt. Some brands that are lower on the sodium scale are Tabasco, Cholula, and "no-salt added" labeled products.

假的。When you eat excessive salt, your body holds onto extra fluid. This extra water volume puts pressure on organs like your heart and kidneys, as well as on your arteries. This increases your risk of heart disease and high blood pressure later in life. While young people don't have to be super restrictive, it's not a good idea for anyone to eat foods with excessive amounts of salt.

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True. Exercise does affect salt sensitivity. Arecent studyshows that physical activity was shown to significantly lower salt sensitivity of blood pressure, especially in salt-sensitive individuals. Eating excess salt can still cause fluid retention, which puts pressure on your organs and arteries, but may not increase blood pressure.

假的。One of the main mechanisms behind a lower carb diet is a reduction in insulin levels. This is helpful not just for diabetes, but for weight loss because insulin tells fat cells to store fat. But another thing that insulin does is to cause the kidneys to hold onto sodium. That's why you lose excess water, and along with it sodium, when you reduce carbs (and therefore insulin).

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假的。All salt contains a similar amount of sodium and there are no studies that prove that one is healthier than another. Opponents of regular table salt argue that these "fancy salts" contain less sodium and contain trace minerals such as calcium, potassium, iron and phosphorus, but there's little evidence to prove this. These salts may, however, taste better and be less processed, so it really is a matter of personal preference.