Comments on: Globe and Mail series on sodium

By: SR

SR — Sat, 22 May 2010 16:05:42 +0000

Parents do not overlook the sodium content in your child’s favorite food. High blood pressure is not an adult only disease only anymore. Read nutrition fact on ALL frozen and processes food packages!!

By: MaryL

MaryL — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 00:31:53 +0000

Eep! Krista, I have dead low blood pressure, too (something like 93/58), so I've been assuming being so NOT hypertensive means that I'm not salt sensitive and don't have to worry about salt. But at least one study suggests that some people with normal or low blood pressure are genuinely salt sensitive. People who are salt-sensitive experience an exaggerated blood pressure elevation when they are given a salt load. (There is no standard way to test for salt-sensitivity, and such tests are currently done only in a research setting.) While salt-sensitivity is felt to be a risk factor for developing hypertension, many salt-sensitive people are, in fact, not hypertensive at all. The Indiana study suggests that, while hypertension is a major cause of cardiovascular disease, it’s not the hypertension that causes early death in salt-sensitive people – it’s the salt-sensitivity itself. That is, in these individuals, high dietary salt causes cardiovascular disease even if their blood pressures remain normal.

By: MaryL

MaryL — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 00:25:03 +0000

Eep! I have ridiculously low blood pressure (95/60), so I've been assuming that because I'm nowhere near hypertensive, I'm not salt sensitive. But according to at least one study, some people who are not hypertensive may still be salt sensitive. People who are salt-sensitive experience an exaggerated blood pressure elevation when they are given a salt load. (There is no standard way to test for salt-sensitivity, and such tests are currently done only in a research setting.) While salt-sensitivity is felt to be a risk factor for developing hypertension, many salt-sensitive people are, in fact, not hypertensive at all. The Indiana study suggests that, while hypertension is a major cause of cardiovascular disease, it’s not the hypertension that causes early death in salt-sensitive people – it’s the salt-sensitivity itself. That is, in these individuals, high dietary salt causes cardiovascular disease even if their blood pressures remain normal.

By: palindrome

palindrome — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 16:42:02 +0000

Here’s an interesting take on sodium from Scott Abel on t-nation: http://www.tmuscle.com/free_online_article/sports_body_training_performance_nutrition/sodium_your_secret_weapon

Of course he’s talking about bodybuilders manipulating their sodium levels. But in general I’m thinking that people worry too much about this.

By: beforewisdom

beforewisdom — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 23:48:23 +0000

@MK, #10

I prefer a dose of kosher pickles taken 3 times daily

By: Mistress Krista

Mistress Krista — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 19:50:07 +0000

The very rare case for more sodium would be someone whose adrenal glands/kidneys aren’t adequately regulating their input-output. I always crack wise when I get my blood pressure done — it’s so low I really should be dead — I tell the nurse I’m going to start medicating with Doritos. It’s good cheap laffs.

By: Mistress Krista

Mistress Krista — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 19:48:34 +0000

I’m going to be that annoying jagoff who says it is easy to make your own pasta. :) It’s actually quite fun and doesn’t take much longer if you have a pasta maker and a food processor. What you lose in prep time you make up in cooking time.

Step 1 – throw flour and egg into food processor
Step 2 – chill for 20 min
Step 3 – roll thru pasta maker
Step 4 – throw in boiling water for literally something like 2 min

The fun part here is trying different flour blends to make various types of whole grain noodles.

By: beforewisdom

beforewisdom — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 19:31:38 +0000

Basically, any dish you don’t make from scratch is going to pump your sodium intake up.

By: beforewisdom

beforewisdom — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 19:30:35 +0000

Interesting post! Based on what I’ve read over the years I didn’t think there was any need for sodium unless you were living on food made from scratch and were sweating gallons a day.

I didn’t think the need or the maximum tolerable amount of sodium would be that high.

This is good news for me. I make a lot of my own food from scratch and I see I now have some room to enjoy some sodium — guilt free.

By: Elizabeth

Elizabeth — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 17:49:40 +0000

Fitday tells me I'm just under 3K/day for the past two months. Oy. I found a list of various organizations' sodium intake recommendations here; the site itself is some kind of fad diet thing, but the listed numbers appear to check out. They seem to agree on a range from 1,500 to 3,000, with a few exceptions. I have plenty of time to cook, but it's damned difficult to find low-sodium components, and when they're available they often cost more. I know I've complained about canned beans here before, but that's only one annoyance. I can't make everything from scratch, people. Pasta sauce? Yes. Pasta? No.