Does anybody know why I'm told to increase sodium intake ?

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JamieCroyle
JamieCroyle Posts: 109 Member
in Food and Nutrition

Hi mfp friends,

Does anybody know why I'm told to increase sodium intake ? I have a few answers . I thought I'd ask again. Is anybody here have the same problem ? I have been told mostly it's low blood pressure . Does anybody have any other answers ?
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Replies

  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 33,979 Member
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    Who told you? Medical professionals? Sodium is a really important electrolyte. Why don't you want to increase it? It is tied to blood pressure.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    Who told you? Sodium is an essential electrolyte and not getting enough is not a good thing.
  • inertiastrength
    inertiastrength Posts: 2,343 Member
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    told by your doctor or told by your internet friend? Are you getting an unusually high amount of potassium in your diet by chance?
  • EricaJMomof2
    EricaJMomof2 Posts: 11 Member
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    My doctor told me that a few years ago because I had low blood pressure.
  • JamieCroyle
    JamieCroyle Posts: 109 Member
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    mrsnattybulking wrote: »
    told by your doctor or told by your internet friend? Are you getting an unusually high amount of potassium in your diet by chance?

    I do eat alot banana's --- and ended up cutting out salt intake. Salty foods became my food addiction. What do you recomend I do> Do you know? Just asking I'm a bananaaholic
  • FreyasRebirth
    FreyasRebirth Posts: 514 Member
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    I'd just use a little bit of iodized salt on foods that could use it. I like it on potatoes, but they are also high in potassium so maybe that is a helpful pairing?
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    JamieCroyle wrote: »
    mrsnattybulking wrote: »
    told by your doctor or told by your internet friend? Are you getting an unusually high amount of potassium in your diet by chance?

    I do eat alot banana's --- and ended up cutting out salt intake. Salty foods became my food addiction. What do you recomend I do> Do you know? Just asking I'm a bananaaholic

    Are you being told by a doctor?

    If you are eating high potassium and not getting enough salt, your electrolytes are out of balance. Not enough sodium is a bad thing. If this is indeed coming from the doctor, eat more salty things...salt your food, etc...don't go out of your way to avoid it.
  • JamieCroyle
    JamieCroyle Posts: 109 Member
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    cmriverside wrote: »
    Who told you? Medical professionals? Sodium is a really important electrolyte. Why don't you want to increase it? It is tied to blood pressure.

    I'm a current ww member and I asked them. I just wanted to see if I'd get any other answers from everyone here? I did .

    Thanks for the info .I appreciate it .
  • EzRemake
    EzRemake Posts: 128 Member
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    If I recall, the smarty 'scientist' are now coming to find that the recommendation of 2300mg is actually too low, and the average adult needs ~3000mg.

    Apparently, too little sodium can actually cause worse problems than too much.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    I'd be skeptical unless it's a doctor telling you you need more. (I don't usually worry about sodium, as I figure I get enough -- I don't eat a lot of ultra processed things, but use salt in cooking as it's good for intensifying flavor.)

    Bananas have a weird reputation for being super high in potassium. They do have a decent amount, but so do many other foods, and I think potatoes actually have more per gram.
  • sullus
    sullus Posts: 2,839 Member
    edited June 2017
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    I know why you might increase your sodium. Low sodium can give you a concussion.

    Lol .. let me explain. A while back while aggressively losing weight, I was going low sodium. One day, I went to tie my shoes, stood up and promptly passed out and knocked my head off an oak floor. Wife said I got a solid 6 inch bounce off the floor.

    Anyhow, after Doctors and cat scans and all kinds of fun, the final diagnosis was .. syncope due to sudden blood pressure drop, likely caused by low blood sodium. Now, I try to make gosh darned sure that I get +/-3000mg a day.

    I noticed over the last couple day's I've been too low (like under 2000mg), and I've had a couple instances of going a little lightheaded if I get up too fast.

    I cant find a link, but I've read some research that has said that high and low sodium diets can each cause their own unique problems, but if you;re in the 2500-3500 range you should be fine. I'll look for the links tonight.
  • JamieCroyle
    JamieCroyle Posts: 109 Member
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    sullus wrote: »
    I know why you might increase your sodium. Low sodium can give you a concussion.

    Lol .. let me explain. A while back while aggressively losing weight, I was going low sodium. One day, I went to tie my shoes, stood up and promptly passed out and knocked my head off an oak floor. Wife said I got a solid 6 inch bounce off the floor.

    Anyhow, after Doctors and cat scans and all kinds of fun, the final diagnosis was .. syncope due to sudden blood pressure drop, likely caused by low blood sodium. Now, I try to make gosh darned sure that I get +/-3000mg a day.

    I noticed over the last couple day's I've been too low (like under 2000mg), and I've had a couple instances of going a little lightheaded if I get up too fast.

    I cant find a link, but I've read some research that has said that high and low sodium diets can each cause their own unique problems, but if you;re in the 2500-3500 range you should be fine. I'll look for the links tonight.

    Thanks for your info
  • JamieCroyle
    JamieCroyle Posts: 109 Member
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    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    JamieCroyle wrote: »
    mrsnattybulking wrote: »
    told by your doctor or told by your internet friend? Are you getting an unusually high amount of potassium in your diet by chance?

    I do eat alot banana's --- and ended up cutting out salt intake. Salty foods became my food addiction. What do you recomend I do> Do you know? Just asking I'm a bananaaholic

    Are you being told by a doctor?

    If you are eating high potassium and not getting enough salt, your electrolytes are out of balance. Not enough sodium is a bad thing. If this is indeed coming from the doctor, eat more salty things...salt your food, etc...don't go out of your way to avoid it.

    I was told by my dr's test results that they sent.
  • JamieCroyle
    JamieCroyle Posts: 109 Member
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    Thanks to my mfp friends for all your help, support, and your suggestions. Thanks again Hope you have a good day.
  • ann4531
    ann4531 Posts: 8 Member
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    If your doctor told you then I would listen to your doctor
  • whitpauly
    whitpauly Posts: 1,483 Member
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    I get told the same thing every time I get blood work done,I'm sure they're not saying to go overboard with salt but they defo tell me to increase it
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
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    JamieCroyle wrote: »
    cmriverside wrote: »
    Who told you? Medical professionals? Sodium is a really important electrolyte. Why don't you want to increase it? It is tied to blood pressure.

    I'm a current ww member and I asked them. I just wanted to see if I'd get any other answers from everyone here? I did .

    Thanks for the info .I appreciate it .

    Go to your doctor and ask for an electrolyte panel. If it shows low numbers or an imbalance, follow their directions to fix it. If not, don't worry about it.

    Do not follow random recommendations from WW members or people on the internet.
  • Sunna_W
    Sunna_W Posts: 744 Member
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    A specific salt, unrefined, "sea salt" in small amounts should help. Also, include this intake in your macros / "vitamins" or something so that you can keep track of it. Also, get yourself educated on the triumvirate of essential electrolytes (sodium, potassium, magnesium) which should be kept in balance and in a specific ratio. Gatorade is not the optimal way to do it. Some people "stack" their own by buying them separately (magnesium citrate / potassium citrate being the most available forms) when added to a good unrefined salt should do the trick and keep you balanced.
  • T1DCarnivoreRunner
    T1DCarnivoreRunner Posts: 11,502 Member
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    Over several decades of time, there were studies published showing a correlation (not causation) of high sodium intake to an increased risk of heart disease. These gained a lot of media attention.

    Also over the same several decades of time, studies were published showing a correlation of low potassium intake to an increased risk of heart disease. These were not noticed by the media or general public.

    In 2009, a study was published that found a correlation of a high Na:K intake and an increased risk of heart disease, though members of the study who consumed large amounts of both in the right ratio did NOT have an increased risk of heart disease. Low Na intake with a high Na:K ratio DID correlate to an increased risk of heart disease.

    We already know about short term electrolyte issues... I had an issue a couple months ago where I could not even stand up on my own due to severe electrolyte imbalance (that was a much more complicated issue than most people would face, to be fair). It seems like the long term correlations show that if you consume a lot of K, then you should consume a lot of Na also. Because the standard western diet is heavily processed and low in potassium, the suggestion is usually to decrease sodium intake. In your case, that long term advice doesn't apply.

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