Hi viewers and welcome back to another Bestie video!
Salt is present in almost all the foods that we eat.
It is hard to imagine any meal without it.
But these days, it has gotten a bad rap for being bad for your health.
A lot of diets have started to focus on cutting salt completely out of your diet.
But is that really a good thing?
Would it have any impact on your health?
The answer is yes.
This is because the main component of salt is sodium which is a very important electrolyte
for your body.
Just like too much sodium has been linked to health problems, too little sodium can
also be very unhealthy.
And in today’s video, we will tell you the bad things that will happen to your body when
you cut out salt completely from your diet.
We will also talk about why it is good for you in moderation.
From increased diabetes risk, heart problems, hyponatremia, weight gain to increased cholesterol
and more, watch till the end to learn about all of them.
Increased risk of death from heart failure: Heart failure is when the heart is not able
to pump enough blood around the body to meet its needs for blood and oxygen.
This doesn’t mean that your heart stops working completely, but it’s still a very
serious health issue.
Interestingly, low sodium diets have been linked to an increased risk of death in people
with heart failure.
One review found that for people with heart failure, limiting sodium intake increased
the risk of dying.
The effect was so strong that people who restricted their sodium intake had a 160 percent higher
risk of death.
This is concerning, as people with heart failure are often told to limit their sodium intake.
Increased diabetes risk: Cutting down salt can set into motion an unfortunate cascade
of changes that result in insulin resistance, an increase in sugar craving and an out of
control appetite.
All these factors combined can add extra pounds on your body.
When you restrict salt your blood vessels constrict.
This causes less blood flow to all areas of your body.
This includes the liver, which is responsible for breaking down insulin.
The liver may be unable to keep up with its job of breaking down insulin while under this
state of restricted blood flow.
Eating salt will dilate your blood vessels and bring more blood flow to all areas of
your body including your liver.
Studies show that a low sodium diet increases your fasting insulin from 10-50 percent.
This is substantial as healthy levels have a fairly small range.
These changes are enough to put a person on the path to diabetes, regardless of how little
sugar they are eating.
You will suffer internal starvation: The changes caused by a no salt diet will affect you whether
or not you gain weight.
You can be metabolically overweight.
This is sometimes called Thin Outside Fat Inside or skinny fat.
In this condition you can have a normal Body Mass Index but still be depositing fat around
your organs and belly, which is the dangerous and unhealthy kind of fat.
Whether you are skinny or fat, restricting salt can cause you to be in an internal state
of starvation.
Someone who is overweight literally may be starving on the inside.
This makes sense when we consider that not only are we depriving ourselves of the minerals
in salt that our body needs, but we are also unable to utilize the fat and protein we are
eating.
Internal starvation degrades our fat metabolism encouraging us to eat more and sit still.
Higher risk of hyponatremia: Hyponatremia is a condition characterized by low levels
of sodium in the blood.
Its symptoms are similar to those caused by dehydration.
In severe cases, the brain may swell, which can lead to headaches, seizures, coma, and
even death.
Certain populations, like older adults, have a higher risk of this problem.
That’s because older adults are more likely to have an illness or take medication that
can reduce sodium levels in the blood.
Athletes, especially those who participate in long-distance endurance events, are also
at a high risk of developing exercise-associated hyponatremia.In their case, it’s usually
caused by drinking too much water and failing to replace the sodium that’s lost through
sweat.
Low blood pressure: An inadequate amount of sodium in your diet can lead to low blood
pressure or hypotension, which is a reading below 90/60 millimeters of mercury.
If either number is low, blood pressure is considered low.
Hypotension can cause dizziness, nausea, fatigue, lack of concentration and fainting.
In severe cases, it can be life-threatening as well.
Unexpected weight gain: The majority of iodine in our diet comes through salt.
So cutting down on it can lead to lower levels of iodine in your body causing weight gain.
This happens because your body does not have enough iodine to make thyroid hormones.
These hormones help control the speed of your metabolism, which is the process by which
your body converts food into energy and heat.
When their levels are low, your body burns fewer calories at rest.
Unfortunately, this means more calories from the foods you eat are stored as fat.
Adding more iodine to your diet in the form of salt may help reverse the effects of a
slow metabolism, as it can help your body make more thyroid hormones.
Increased bad cholesterol levels: Some studies have found that low sodium diets may increase
both bad cholesterol and triglyceride levels.
In a review of studies in healthy people, low sodium diets caused about 5 percent increase
in bad cholesterol and a 6 percent increase in triglycerides.
Another review reported a 2 percent increase in cholesterol and a 7 percent increase in
triglycerides.
What’s more, these studies found that salt restriction only caused minor reductions in
blood pressure, on average, with a slightly stronger effect in people with high blood
pressure.
Now that you know what would happen if you stop eating salt, let us tell you about a
few of its health benefits, provided you don’t overdo it.
Helps you stay hydrated: To stay better hydrated your body needs a delicate balance of sodium
and potassium.
This is because water in your body follows sodium, so if you have too much your body
will retain water.
Potassium works to balance this out, which is why sea salt is much better than sodium
chloride or table salt.
Sea salt like Celtic or pink Himalayan contains both sodium and potassium, which helps balance
your levels naturally.
Balances electrolytes and prevents muscle cramping: Sea salt is an excellent source
of electrolytes, which has been shown to prevent muscle cramping during exercise.
It contains sodium, magnesium, potassium, and calcium, all of which you need for optimal
health.
These minerals must come from your diet because your body can’t create them.
Without sufficient electrolytes you can experience irregular heartbeat, fatigue, nausea, and
even seizures.
Helps thyroid function properly: Your thyroid plays an important role in metabolism.
But for your thyroid to work properly, your body needs the mineral iodine, which is found
mainly in salts.
An iodine deficiency prevents your body from producing enough of the thyroid hormone.
Symptoms of a deficiency include an enlarged thyroid, constipation, difficulty thinking,
fatigue, and sensitivity to cold.
Iodine is also added to most salts and having some of it in your diet can help your thyroid
function properly.
Did you know that eating the right foods can help heal your thyroid?
Want to know more?
Watch this video titled “13 Foods That Can Help Heal Your Thyroid”.
Now back to why removing salt from your diet is a bad idea.
A Healthier Nervous System: Sodium regulates water flow throughout your body, which is
critical for a healthy nervous system.
Additionally, the water of your nervous system requires salt for electrical conduction to
send and receive nervous system signals.
Just as with other functions of the body, your brain needs the right balance of sodium
to other electrolytes.
This is why sea salt is a much better option than table salt.
Improved Digestion: Salt is necessary in the role of digestion, and it starts in the mouth.
The salivary amylase, an enzyme which helps break down carbohydrates in the saliva, is
activated by the flavor of salt.
Also, it plays a huge role in the making of hydrochloric acid, which is secreted in the
stomach for the breakdown of food, especially protein.
Most people are insufficient in hydrochloric acid, and this can cause numerous digestive
issues like bloating, gas, heartburn, indigestion, and can eventually lead to leaky gut and chronic
disease.
Better Skin Health And Lower Inflammation: Taking a sea salt bath is thought to decrease
skin dryness and inflammation.
In fact, it is recommended to add 1 cup of salt to bathwater to help relieve irritation
from eczema, a condition marked by red, itchy skin.
However, it’s unclear how and whether salt baths help decrease skin inflammation, as
well as whether sea salt, in particular, exerts any specific effects.
One study in people with dry skin found that bathing in a salt solution obtained from the
Dead Sea helped increase skin hydration and decrease roughness, compared with bathing
in tap water.
What’s more, another study found that higher concentrations of sodium in the body and skin
may increase the number of immune cells that lead to the inflammatory reactions associated
with dry and itchy skin.
Stronger Immune System: The alkalizing property of sea salt helps in keeping bacterial and
viral infections at bay.
Also, the presence of essential minerals like zinc, iron, phosphorus, manganese, magnesium,
potassium and iodine helps in boosting the body’s immunity.
The appropriate quantity of nutrients and mineral depositions in sea salt make it extremely
beneficial for allergy, fever, cold and flu.
Have you ever tried removing salt completely from your diet?
How did that work out for you?
Do you currently follow a low salt or high salt diet?
Let us know in the comments section below!