I need more sodium

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  • mgvetter
    mgvetter Posts: 1
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    Add green olives to your diet! .......
  • gigglesinthesun
    gigglesinthesun Posts: 860 Member
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    you don't need to eat 'healthy' to not have enough sodium in you diet. You could eat your own weight in home baked goods with cream on top and if unsalted butter was used and no salt was added, you wouldn't have enough sodium. People can drink significant calories without hitting their sodium. So it is not necessarily people who eat 'super healthy' and 'super clean' that could struggle getting enough sodium.
  • Ngreen2707
    Ngreen2707 Posts: 5
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    Well even with this for a day it's still only coming in with 1000mg of Sodium for me

    Bacon Sandwich - 3 rashers of lean back bacon on 50/50 bread with Bertolli light spread
    Rump Steak, sweet potato, broccoli, spinach & cabbage
    Homemade Chilli Con Carne with Brown Rice
    Whey Protein Shake made with skimmed milk
    Rice Cake
    Strawberry Yogurt
    Various fruit and nuts throughout the day

    I wouldn't exactly call that super healthy? I suppose I could through a load of salt into the chilli if needed.
    Salmon tomorrow so see if that bumps it up any :)

    With Sodium is it something you would need on a 'per day' basis or could you splurge on a couple of days and the body retain it for the days you go without?
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,401 MFP Moderator
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    Well even with this for a day it's still only coming in with 1000mg of Sodium for me

    Bacon Sandwich - 3 rashers of lean back bacon on 50/50 bread with Bertolli light spread
    Rump Steak, sweet potato, broccoli, spinach & cabbage
    Homemade Chilli Con Carne with Brown Rice
    Whey Protein Shake made with skimmed milk
    Rice Cake
    Strawberry Yogurt
    Various fruit and nuts throughout the day

    I wouldn't exactly call that super healthy? I suppose I could through a load of salt into the chilli if needed.
    Salmon tomorrow so see if that bumps it up any :)

    With Sodium is it something you would need on a 'per day' basis or could you splurge on a couple of days and the body retain it for the days you go without?

    You have to question if all the entry's are correct. Because it's actually really easy to get sodium. Any chance you can open your diary?
  • Greytfish
    Greytfish Posts: 810
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    .

    With that said, I would think obesity and genetics play a much greater role in cardiovascular disease than sodium. I frequently eat 3500mg of sodium or more and have my blood pressure rarely exceed 110/70 with great cholesterol.

    That should be the case, though not always....my blood pressure was regularly 124/74 about 100 pounds ago......now that I've lost it I've gone up to 140/80. I almost wonder if I wouldn't be better off health wise if I put some back on. lol

    That's not necessarily uncommon if the loss was mostly attributable to a calorie deficit vs. cardio and weight training.
  • Greytfish
    Greytfish Posts: 810
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    Deli meats and cheeses, pretzels, potato chips, sprinkling a little salt on your food, etc etc.

    2500 mg of sodium isn't too much. 5000 or 6000 mg in one day is not impossible especially with the foods we have on the market today and I know that amount will make anyone put on water weight.

    Solid first post. Apparently you have a desire to suffer from high blood pressure and perhaps, a stroke is in your future.

    There is surprisingly little evidence that such a level of sodium intake actually contributes to hypertension or stroke. Here's an interesting article about salt intake recommendations in general:
    http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/03/opinion/sunday/we-only-think-we-know-the-truth-about-salt.html?pagewanted=all

    The real issue of concern is that almost no one who consumes higher levels of sodium (2,500-3,000mgs/day) meets their other macros and calorie targets while getting sufficient potasium to balance out that much sodium and maintain heart health/function. If you look at sodium in a vaccuum (either way) you miss the point entirely.

    And as far as runners needing more sodium, you generally have to run continuously for in excess of three hours while hydrating and sweating to trigegr a need not already satisfied by a 1500-2500 mgs/day diet. What you body will need first is more simple carbs/sugars for fuel as you exhaust glycogen stores.
  • meganjcallaghan
    meganjcallaghan Posts: 949 Member
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    .

    With that said, I would think obesity and genetics play a much greater role in cardiovascular disease than sodium. I frequently eat 3500mg of sodium or more and have my blood pressure rarely exceed 110/70 with great cholesterol.

    That should be the case, though not always....my blood pressure was regularly 124/74 about 100 pounds ago......now that I've lost it I've gone up to 140/80. I almost wonder if I wouldn't be better off health wise if I put some back on. lol

    That's not necessarily uncommon if the loss was mostly attributable to a calorie deficit vs. cardio and weight training.

    calorie deficit plus I've done a minimum of 30 minutes cardio (though closer to an hour most days...usually i run anywhere from 6 to 10 Km) every day since the beginning of August.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
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    .

    With that said, I would think obesity and genetics play a much greater role in cardiovascular disease than sodium. I frequently eat 3500mg of sodium or more and have my blood pressure rarely exceed 110/70 with great cholesterol.

    That should be the case, though not always....my blood pressure was regularly 124/74 about 100 pounds ago......now that I've lost it I've gone up to 140/80. I almost wonder if I wouldn't be better off health wise if I put some back on. lol

    That's not necessarily uncommon if the loss was mostly attributable to a calorie deficit vs. cardio and weight training.

    calorie deficit plus I've done a minimum of 30 minutes cardio (though closer to an hour most days...usually i run anywhere from 6 to 10 Km) every day since the beginning of August.

    Loss of lean mass can have a similar effect.....
  • Thewatcher_66
    Thewatcher_66 Posts: 1,643 Member
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    If you are doing lots of cardio (i.e. long distance running), you may need to increase your sodium intake for that reason to avoid cramping. Otherwise, your levels are fine. If you need to gain weight, adjust your calorie intake.
  • athensguy
    athensguy Posts: 550
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    In for all the wanna be doctors:)

    If you want useless dietary advice, doctors would be the go-to group.
  • pinkledoodledoo
    pinkledoodledoo Posts: 290 Member
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    Eat Ramen.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
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    Sodium in a healthy person isn't harmful in general and if your doctor said to increase it, it's as easy as adding table salt.

    But if you're doing it solely to gain weight, it has no calories and will only cause water retention. I'm confused why you think sodium will help you with your weight gain goal.
  • meganjcallaghan
    meganjcallaghan Posts: 949 Member
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    .

    With that said, I would think obesity and genetics play a much greater role in cardiovascular disease than sodium. I frequently eat 3500mg of sodium or more and have my blood pressure rarely exceed 110/70 with great cholesterol.

    That should be the case, though not always....my blood pressure was regularly 124/74 about 100 pounds ago......now that I've lost it I've gone up to 140/80. I almost wonder if I wouldn't be better off health wise if I put some back on. lol

    That's not necessarily uncommon if the loss was mostly attributable to a calorie deficit vs. cardio and weight training.

    calorie deficit plus I've done a minimum of 30 minutes cardio (though closer to an hour most days...usually i run anywhere from 6 to 10 Km) every day since the beginning of August.

    Loss of lean mass can have a similar effect.....

    You mean loss of lean mass can make blood pressure go up? aaand does running cause you to drop muscle?

    Everything I read tells me cardio cardio cardio to improve heart health/blood pressure. Well....that and weight loss, less sodium and less fat. I've done all that just so when the doctor says ''you have high blood pressure...you need to (fill in the blank)" I can say ''already done it. now what?" ......now I just keep hearing ''you're doing all the right things. keep it up" and yet I'm trending the opposite direction of what all the studies say should be happening. Perhaps I'm just a freak of nature :P
  • Thewatcher_66
    Thewatcher_66 Posts: 1,643 Member
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    Megan, perhaps it's family history. I do all the right things too but still take medication. I know how frustrating it can be.
  • meganjcallaghan
    meganjcallaghan Posts: 949 Member
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    Megan, perhaps it's family history. I do all the right things too but still take medication. I know how frustrating it can be.

    True 'nuff. I guess I'd have an easier time accepting that it's my lot in life if it had always been high but as of last april I was still coming in with almost an ideal BP reading when I was still up at like 250 - 260 pounds. Seems silly that now that I'm down to 174 I'm all of a sudden cruising for a heart attack. I've had it suggested that it may have gone up for my readings because before I was getting it done for the sake of information and NOW I'm doing it because I'm trying to donate a kidney and with all the other testing done everything is pretty much riding on my blood pressure and it's not looking good. That's the dumb bit. The one thing that was fine before I changed everything else they wanted me to is now the one thing that's screwing it all up.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
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    .

    With that said, I would think obesity and genetics play a much greater role in cardiovascular disease than sodium. I frequently eat 3500mg of sodium or more and have my blood pressure rarely exceed 110/70 with great cholesterol.

    That should be the case, though not always....my blood pressure was regularly 124/74 about 100 pounds ago......now that I've lost it I've gone up to 140/80. I almost wonder if I wouldn't be better off health wise if I put some back on. lol

    That's not necessarily uncommon if the loss was mostly attributable to a calorie deficit vs. cardio and weight training.

    calorie deficit plus I've done a minimum of 30 minutes cardio (though closer to an hour most days...usually i run anywhere from 6 to 10 Km) every day since the beginning of August.

    Loss of lean mass can have a similar effect.....

    You mean loss of lean mass can make blood pressure go up? aaand does running cause you to drop muscle?

    Everything I read tells me cardio cardio cardio to improve heart health/blood pressure. Well....that and weight loss, less sodium and less fat. I've done all that just so when the doctor says ''you have high blood pressure...you need to (fill in the blank)" I can say ''already done it. now what?" ......now I just keep hearing ''you're doing all the right things. keep it up" and yet I'm trending the opposite direction of what all the studies say should be happening. Perhaps I'm just a freak of nature :P

    Yes and yes. I've not done a ton of research on it, but lots of cardio often results in lean mass loss, and lean mass loss can cause blood pressure to rise. Adipose tissue is not as well vascularized as lean tissue and so it generally presents more vascular resistance. Therefore blood pressure needs to be higher to get sufficient blood flow. Blood pressure does tend to go down a bit as people lose weight, but if a lot of the weight you're losing is muscle I could see pressure going up a little bit. Or I could be wrong and you're just a freak of nature.
  • GretaGirl8
    GretaGirl8 Posts: 274 Member
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    processed and pickled foods=high in sodium unless otherwise indicated.

    most americans get plenty of sodium in their diet due to their high consumption of processed foods. one thing to consider, however, is are you getting enough iodine. iodine is added to regular table salt, but is not often found in the "salt" that is added to processed foods. Also, iodine is rarely added to sea salt. Sorry, I didn't mean to get of track; I just felt it was a valid point on the topic of sodium/salt.
  • mariposa224
    mariposa224 Posts: 1,269 Member
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    No one should be telling the OP not to increase sodium. For all you guys know, her doctor could have told her this?

    Pre-packaged meals are high in sodium. I really like Amy's frozen burritos. They even make gluten and dairy free ones, and they're delicious.

    ^^THIS! You don't know if the OP's doctor said she needed to increase it. I actually had a low sodium level with my last annual blood work in August.. I had to go back and have it re-tested twice after that to ensure that my sodium and potassium were both in line. Don't just assume that she's trying to gain water weight...
  • Ang108
    Ang108 Posts: 1,711 Member
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    Hello !

    I've just found out that my sodium levels are too low for my objective, I want to gain weight.

    Generally I consume around 1,136 and I need 2,500.

    So, what is the best way to increase my sodium levels ?

    Thanks.

    I have never heard that someone needs a lower minimum of salt, unless you live in areas where the mean temperature is 35C or above for long periods of time ( parts of India, Africa and the middle East for example ). Usually people living in North America and Europe get more than enough salt in their diet. Also, just like going over the recommended 2500 mgs a day is not dangerous, it is also not dangerous to be under, unless the low sodium levels are a symptom of something more serious ( like low Potassium ), but by themselves there is nothing to worry about. I personally would not eat extra salt to have higher sodium levels alone, but would put up with them if by increasing my Potassium level my Sodium level would also increase. But just for weight gain.......I have never heard of it.
    If you eat more salt you will retain more water and that increases your weight, but is not a real weight gain. I know I am not a doctor, but have a MA in Nutritional Science and have worked in the field for almost 40 years ( most of them in very hot countries....:o). and I never ingested extra salt).
  • mariposa224
    mariposa224 Posts: 1,269 Member
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    No one should be telling the OP not to increase sodium. For all you guys know, her doctor could have told her this?

    Pre-packaged meals are high in sodium. I really like Amy's frozen burritos. They even make gluten and dairy free ones, and they're delicious.


    jeez... her doctor would have told her what to do about it.
    Not true. I wasn't sick when mine was low. And my doctor didn't tell me anything to do either. She just monitored to make sure it didn't STAY low.

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