Salt is an essential part of healthy food and healthy diets
Don't we eat too much salt?
As in most western populations, the diets of most Americans have salt intakes that span the "hygienic safety range" identified by renowned Swedish medical researcher Björn Folkow of the University of Göteborg (equivalent to 2,300 - 4,600 or 5,750 milligrams of sodium daily; Americans average 3,500). Salt is a necessary nutrient. Our brains signal salt intakes based on our varying needs due to such factors as our genetics, physical condition, diet, stature, environment and stress. Different people have different salt requirements. Fortunately, the kidneys of healthy people efficiently process and excrete "excess" sodium from the body. Salt affects many bodily systems: blood pressure, insulin metabolism, hormone production, etc. and people have different responses to reducing dietary salt. Studies of the general U.S. population show no health benefits due to lower sodium diets, alarmist claims to the contrary. Those claiming salt is unhealthy have focused only on the blood pressure variable, assuming it is the only relevant risk factor. The only randomized controlled trial of health outcomes of a low-salt diet actually found worse health outcomes from those who cut back on salt.
Salt is a necessary ingredient to food preparation.
Salt is our oldest known food ingredient. Salt is a natural food preservative because it lowers the “water activity” of food, reducing the pathogenic-microbial growth. In food processing, salt serves multiple critical functional purposes, making it one of the most important ingredients in food manufacturing. For instance, in bread making salt works to influence the strength, expansion and texture of dough. In cheese making, salt is required to cure and develop cheese’s consistency.
Salt provides no-calorie flavor.
Consumers love the taste of salt in food and, in fact, their bodies crave it. With the trend toward low-fat foods, food producers must rely on salt to provide the desired taste. Consumers who want to control their weight need access to low-fat foods that still taste good. Salt is the no-calorie solution.
Salt encourages healthy food choices.
Salt improves the taste of many foods which carry other essential nutrients. For example, many cruciferous vegetables, which supply a wide array of important nutrients, are bitter and much more palatable with salt added. Therefore, salt restriction may have the unintended consequence of reducing the intake of vegetables. Salt restriction by food manufacturers may also unleash an arsenal of chemical substitutes on unknowing consumers in quantities for which toxicity levels have not been tested.
Salt appetite
The appetite for salt is determined by the brain which senses an individual’s need. It is more powerful than a person’s conscious choice. When salty foods are freely available, humans and animals will spontaneously intake more than is required for immediate need and excrete any excesses in their urine. Recent research indicates another reason we may crave salt, beyond it providing a necessary nutrient; it might put us in a better mood. A University of Iowa researcher has discovered that when rats are deficient in sodium chloride, common table salt, they exhibit symptoms of depression such as decreased participation in activities they normally enjoy.
Nutrition during pregnancy
Proper nutrition is vitally important for the health of expectant mothers and their babies. Low-salt diets during pregnancy increased stillborn births and low-birth weight infants when these diets were prescribed to women a generation ago. Low-sodium diets have since been repudiated by the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology which has found “there is no clinical benefit in restricting sodium intake during pregnancy and there is the potential for harm.” It is important for pregnant women to consume iodized salt, Iodine Deficiency Disorders (IDD) are the major cause of preventable mental retardation.
Nutrition as we age
It is essential that the elderly maintain a stable sodium level in the body. Because of declining renal function in the aging body, the kidneys retain less sodium. Changes in the intestinal function sometimes also lead to reduced absorption of many nutrients. These changes expose the elderly to an increased risk of hyponatremia.