Training & Nutrition - Side effects of extra sodium?

Hey guys I am wondering what are, if any, negative side effects of having a diet high in sodium. I have been eating a lot of soups and beans lately and all the canned stuff is loaded with sodium. I try to wash the beans before I use them and dilute the soups but I know it is to much and it doesnt even make it taste better. Thanks

Hey guys I am wondering what are, if any, negative side effects of having a diet high in sodium. I have been eating a lot of soups and beans lately and all the canned stuff is loaded with sodium. I try to wash the beans before I use them and dilute the soups but I know it is to much and it doesnt even make it taste better. Thanks

i can think of two: high blood pressure and water retention (read as weight gain)

it's just not healthy (unfortunately i'm a salt-aholic!)

canned food isn't the best for you.. shop the outside aisles... FREST food.. if you have to... frozen veggies... but stay away from canned veggies and canned soup!

However, eating too little isn't good either. I recently added it all up (yes, everything) and found I didn't get more than around 2 g/day for over a month, and I developed some minor (reversible) health problems because of that. I've increased my daily intake since, and the problems have started to diminish.

However, you don't get high blood pressure from it alone. Predisposition to high blood pressure is also required.

Edit...
That's 2 g of NaCl, not Na alone.

Yeah, only a small percentage of people with high sodium intake ends up with hypertension; you have to be sodium-sensitive first. Blood-pressure has less to do with absolute sodium intake than with the relative balance between sodium vs. potassium & magnesium & calcium. If you exercise and sweat more than the average office-cubicle dweller, you'd need 300-500% more sodium than average (about 500-1000mg/hr of exercising). Low sodium is also part of the problem with people dying from hyponatremia (the other part being drinking too much). Inadequate sodium prevents proper regulation of water in the body.

Here's some journals:

JAP - Role of potassium in regulating blood flow and blood pressure (http://ajpregu.physiology.org/cgi/content/abstract/290/3/R546) Dietary supplementation of potassium can lower blood pressure in normal and some hypertensive patients. Again, in contrast to NaCl restriction, the response to potassium supplementation is slow to appear, taking ~4 wk. Such supplementation reduces the need for antihypertensive medication. "Salt-sensitive" hypertension responds particularly well, perhaps, in part, because supplementation with potassium increases the urinary excretion of sodium chloride.

NewsTarget - Blaming dietary sodium for high blood pressure is too simplistic (http://www.newstarget.com/015820.html) most theories focus on sodium's in vivo interaction with potassium, magnesium and calcium. In fact, some experts believe that these nutrients play more of a role in these individuals' salt sensitivity than sodium itself. Deficiencies in these complementary minerals may actually be the larger culprit in hypertension.

UMMC - What Lifestyle Changes are needed to Control High BLood Pressure (http://www.umm.edu/patiented/articles/what_lifestyle_changes_needed_control_high_blood_pressure_000014_8.htm) Some experts believe that sufficient intake of minerals, particularly potassium, magnesium, and calcium, may be more beneficial than salt restriction for reducing blood pressure.

* Potassium. Studies have indicated that potassium deficiencies increase the risk for high blood pressure. More important more recent studies indicate that a potassium-rich diet may reduce hypertension. The best source of potassium is from the fruits and vegetables that contain them. In fact, there is some evidence that a potassium-rich diet can reduce the risk of stroke by 22% to 40%.

Body & Fitness - What is Blood Pressure? (http://www.bodyandfitness.com/Information/Health/bloodpressure.htm) However, Dr. Whitaker states unequivocally that it is as important to increase your intake of both magnesium and potassium as it is to reduce your intake of salt. Potassium works with sodium to help regulate fluids in the cells, and to equalize the acid-alkaline balance in the blood. To function correctly, these minerals need to be present in the body in a ratio of 5:1, potassium to sodium. Health Counselor editor Karolyn Gazella reports that the typical American diet includes twice as much sodium as potassium. This results in water retention and the loss of potassium through the urine. In fact, Researchers from the University of Mississippi report that too little potassium combined with too much sodium may be a major contributing factor in the development of hypertension.

DairyCouncil - A New Look At Dietary Patterns and Hypertension (http://www.nationaldairycouncil.org/NationalDairyCouncil/Health/Digest/dcd72-3Page1.htm)

Physiological Reviews - Sodium/Calcium Exchange: Its Physiological Implications (http://physrev.physiology.org/cgi/content/full/79/3/763?maxtoshow=&HITS=50&hits=50&RESULTFORMAT=1&andorexacttitle=and&andorexacttitleabs=and&andorexactfulltext=and&searchid=1140508664510_61&FIRSTINDEX=0&sortspec=relevance)

CSU - Diet and Hypertension (http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/foodnut/09318.html) A newer area of interest is the relationship between calcium and high blood pressure. People with a low calcium intake seem to be at increased risk for hypertension. Everyone should meet the Dietary Reference Intake (DRI) for calcium every day. For adults, this is 1,000 mg per day. For adults over 50, 1,200 mg is recommended.

However, note that high-calcium intake inhibits absorption of iron. So take just the recommended dosage of calcium, it's all about balance. :) Using the potassium-based salts like Morton's NoSalt will let you lower sodium while increasing potassium.

Yeah, only a small percentage of people with high sodium intake ends up with hypertension; you have to be sodium-sensitive first. Blood-pressure has less to do with absolute sodium intake than with the relative balance between sodium vs. potassium & magnesium & calcium.
Here's some journals:

I am curious of the meaning of "sodium sensitive". I know the cause of the sensitivity may not be clear but I am curious of the biological difference between a sodium sensitive individual, and someone who is not?


UMMC - What Lifestyle Changes are needed to Control High BLood Pressure Some experts believe that sufficient intake of minerals, particularly potassium, magnesium, and calcium, may be more beneficial than salt restriction for reducing blood pressure.

* Potassium. Studies have indicated that potassium deficiencies increase the risk for high blood pressure. More important more recent studies indicate that a potassium-rich diet may reduce hypertension. The best source of potassium is from the fruits and vegetables that contain them. In fact, there is some evidence that a potassium-rich diet can reduce the risk of stroke by 22% to 40%.

This correlation is interesting; but could it point out that the entire fruit or vegetable may be the cause, or at least most of it, for the lower blood pressure levels, and not just one of the minerals that is part of the chemical make-up?




CSU - Diet and Hypertension A newer area of interest is the relationship between calcium and high blood pressure. People with a low calcium intake seem to be at increased risk for hypertension. Everyone should meet the Dietary Reference Intake (DRI) for calcium every day. For adults, this is 1,000 mg per day. For adults over 50, 1,200 mg is recommended.

This source seems baseless, especially when looking at this alone. What sort of life were these people living? Is increased Ca the reason for thier health, or is it the entire eating and activity habits that contribute th thier health? Would one be able to eat chips and cola, but take a daily supplement that contains the DRI's, and be as healthy as someone that eats a diet that contains the same DRI's, but obtains them from meat, fruit and vegetables, which contain only meat fruit and vegetables?

Thanks for all the info so far guys. I don't even like salt and never put it on my food it just happens to be in these certain things I eat.

Anyway, I would say that I sweat more then an average person but I won't allow that to let me get crazy with the salt.

Canned beans are very convenient as its hard to find time to soak beans overnight. Does rinsing the canned ones remove a lot of the salt? What about the nutrients in the beans? Do you lose those by rinsing?

I am curious of the meaning of "sodium sensitive". I know the cause of the sensitivity may not be clear but I am curious of the biological difference between a sodium sensitive individual, and someone who is not?
Well, it's almost stupid: "sodium sensitive" people will develop high blood pressure (acutely, and eventually chronically) with an increased sodium intake.

Usually the test for this is done kind of in reverse; that is: it's not done until after high blood pressure is noticed. The first thing any doctor will do with a patient with hypertension is put them on a sodium-reduced diet for a couple of months and see if it has any effect. If blood pressure goes down after reducing sodium intake, that person is considered to be sodium sensitive. Simple, huh? :)

If blood pressure does not go down with reduction in sodium intake (and weight loss and increased exercise), the usual next step is to medicate.


It should be mentioned that a lot of people who are getting too much sodium are not necessarily getting it through the salt shaker at home. Processed foods, lunchmeats in particular, have amazingly high levels of sodium, in forms other than sodium chloride. Actually, canned beans are pretty high in sodium. Same with seemingly benign or even beneficial stuff like tomato juice. Take one day and add up the sodium (from the Nutritional Information labels) and you might be surprised how much your'e getting. Be sure to check the serving sizes carefully...many lunchmeats are something like "1 slice", who uses 1 slice?!?! And some of those have like 400-500mg per serving...a "Dagwood" sandwich could easily double the recommended (maximum) intake of 2,500mg of sodium.

Well, it's almost stupid: "sodium sensitive" people will develop high blood pressure (acutely, and eventually chronically) with an increased sodium intake..

Sure, I am aware of the simple answer that Na sensitive people will develop high BP when consuming an excess of Na, as in the context it was presented.

I am wondering about the biological mechanism that is in effect, which link high blood pressure and greater than normal Na sensitivity. What is the mechanism that makes one sensitive to Na, which causes an elevation in BP? Is the Na, K exchange pump in the nephron affected, thus increasing osmotic pressure. And in the case of someone that is Na sensitive, is more Na needed to remove a smaller amount K than is usually needed?

Or is it that intra-cellular K levels are harder to sustain in an environment where the bodies nervous system is less inactive, and maybe needs less Na to fire fewer neurons?

If one is more sensitive to Na than the population why is it? In effect, what is the biological mechanism of Na sensitivity?

Hey guys I am wondering what are, if any, negative side effects of having a diet high in sodium. I have been eating a lot of soups and beans lately and all the canned stuff is loaded with sodium. I try to wash the beans before I use them and dilute the soups but I know it is to much and it doesnt even make it taste better. Thanks

Makes ya thirsty:D.