Too much sodium?

crg0404
crg0404 Posts: 4 Member
edited November 22 in Health and Weight Loss
Hey guys!

I am aware that the recommended amount of sodium is 2300mg a day, but it is actually pretty hard to stay under that number every single day.

I have been consistently losing weight, and have many days over 2300 sodium. I should mention I drink at least one gallon of water a day, and sometimes even more than that. I wonder if that has something to do with sodium not effecting me so much...

I'd love to hear other stories and opinions!

Replies

  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    I didn't limit sodium when I was losing weight and I don't limit it now.

    The 2,300 limit isn't based on weight loss, it's based on general recommendations for health (although some people find they retain water when they have a day that is higher in sodium and that can make it more difficult to track weight loss). That you're consistently losing weight doesn't mean that it's not having other impacts on your health (not to say that it is, just that certain people do need to monitor their sodium for health reasons).
  • Fursian
    Fursian Posts: 566 Member
    Something else to think about maybe, but there can be incorrect food database entries, worth double checking at least.
  • MichelleSilverleaf
    MichelleSilverleaf Posts: 2,027 Member
    I keep an eye on my sodium, partly because I was diagnosed as pre-diabetic so now I'm just watching all my numbers, and my ankles and calves swell badly when I go over. And like janejellyroll said it makes it more difficult for me to track my weight loss.
  • crg0404
    crg0404 Posts: 4 Member
    Thanks guys! Definitely interesting and things to think about. I do notice sometimes I feel a little "swollen" in the morning if I eat over my sodium the day before.
  • HeidiCooksSupper
    HeidiCooksSupper Posts: 3,831 Member
    There are plenty of "stories and opinions" about everything out there. To make decisions, though, I carefully choose and evaluate the sources of those opinions.

    On the sodium issue, I'm taking the American Heart Association recommendation "with a grain of salt." For someone like me, an over-65 woman on BP medicine, the recommendation is to stay under 1300 mg a day, which is quite low. I do aim for it but usually am a bit over it. I do try to stay well under the more general recommendation of 2300 mg which is commonly cited.

    The picture is blurry, however. Different studies have conflicting findings. I'm going with a Harvard Medical School article to help me understand the state of our knowledge on the topic. https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/sodium-studies-blur-picture-heart-healthy-201408157366 Given what it says, I'm sticking with the low sodium recommendation for now but I will keep an eye on the state of our knowledge.

    Anyone who tells you they KNOW exactly what you should do one way or the other is not keeping up with the science and the current conflicting findings. Evaluate your info sources and choose wisely.
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    HeidiCooksSupper wrote: »
    There are plenty of "stories and opinions" about everything out there. To make decisions, though, I carefully choose and evaluate the sources of those opinions.

    On the sodium issue, I'm taking the American Heart Association recommendation "with a grain of salt." For someone like me, an over-65 woman on BP medicine, the recommendation is to stay under 1300 mg a day, which is quite low. I do aim for it but usually am a bit over it. I do try to stay well under the more general recommendation of 2300 mg which is commonly cited.

    The picture is blurry, however. Different studies have conflicting findings. I'm going with a Harvard Medical School article to help me understand the state of our knowledge on the topic. https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/sodium-studies-blur-picture-heart-healthy-201408157366 Given what it says, I'm sticking with the low sodium recommendation for now but I will keep an eye on the state of our knowledge.

    Anyone who tells you they KNOW exactly what you should do one way or the other is not keeping up with the science and the current conflicting findings. Evaluate your info sources and choose wisely.

    THIS ^^^^

    Also, watch what your body does. If you have issues with daily water retention, maybe work on lowering your sodium. If it is a one-off, ignore it. I had serious issues with PMS water retention back in my college days so I actively tried to lower my sodium by buying lower sodium options and not adding salt to my cooking. It worked and the PMS was much milder.

    Enjoying salty foods is a learned behavior and I very quickly reached the point where I did not like food with added salt (much to the disgust of many a restaurant chef when I would sent food back to the kitchen for being too salty). To this day (40 years later) I still do not add salt to my foods. On the other hand, I do not look at the sodium content of foods that I buy. If there is a "no salt added option", I will get that but I actually ignore sodium. My daily sodium intake averages about 1500-2000 mg according to my diary.

    On the other hand, if I eat popcorn it HAS to be buttered and salted.
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