Jul 26, 2011
Like nicotine or caffeine, even salt is addictive, says a recent study.
Similar to the habit-forming cycles, where the body always needs a certain amount of the stimulant to avoid withdrawal systems, the body needs its salt too.
An adult human needs an ideal serving of not more than 5 gms of salt per day. Even the daily recommended iodine levels of 150 micro grams is included in it.
However, another study places average Indians’ consumption to be 8 to 12 grams a day, thus putting our health at risk as a nation together! Our kidneys are wonderful organs that could handle even such excesses. But this cannot sustain forever, as hypertension, water retention (edema) and even kidney failures are possible due to the over intake of salt.
Avoid eating too much of papads, chips, pickles, baked foods, fries and canned food however tasty they may be. They are loaded with so much salt that the system actually overworks to get rid of the excesses.
Some wrongly feel that drinking lots of water can help them purge the excess salt away. But by drinking water in excess, a person runs the risk of losing those essential salts in their systems, which could result in hyponatremia, which means low levels of sodium (salt) in the body, which leads to tiredness and energy loss.
A simple idea would be to cook all your food without salt, and add the appropriate amounts on your plates and mix it. It helps you keep tab on your salt consumption. As always, eating healthy home cooked food is the best way to live.
The writer is an associate professor, Department of endocrinology, Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences, Kochi
* By Dr Usha Menon
* DC
