Salt and long-term weight loss

dharmabum1974

I'm aware that sodium can limit short-term weight loss by making you retain water (feel free to correct that if I'm wrong, going on 8th grade nutrition memories), but what does it do to long-term weight loss?

I ask because salted foods are all that is keeping me sane while I do this, but if it has long-term weight loss consequences I need to consider lowering it. If all it means is that I retain water and my daily weigh ins fluctuate a little I can take that.

Any experts out there?

BumbyDog

No, but salt is my addiction too. But strangely enough, since I've been logging my food diary here I've noticed that I'm always well under the allowance they give, so that can;t be bad. Mind you... I just remembered I don't log the weekends and that would tend to be pizza/ crisps time!! lol

dharmabum1974

@BumbyDog

That's interesting, I just went and added sodium to the things I'm tracking. I'll see how I am doing.

Speedtrap

Salt itself has no effect on weight loss, it can cause you to retain water, but has no effect on loss.
What it does have an affect on if your heart and blood pressure, that is where the recommended 2000-2500 mg a day come from,
more than that and if can start to affect Blood Pressure.

If you have no issues with BP then you can eat a bit more if you want, I know my doc likes it when I stay under 2500mg/day but he also said I don't need to watch it as event at 4000mg/day it did not affect my BP.

dharmabum1974

@Speedtrap

Thanks, that was what I was thinking... adding sodium to my tracker has shown a few foods I might want to avoid even though have no BP problems.