Nutrition-conscious consumers carefully monitor their sodium intake, which should not exceed 2,300 milligrams (mg) per day, according to the 2005 U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans, released in January by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
But salt has been demonized by the media, according to Colorado nutritional psychologist Marc David, a workshop leader at the Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health in Lenox, Massachusetts, and author of The Slow Down Diet: Eating for Pleasure, Energy & Weight Loss.
"It's fascinating how salt has become such a maligned foodstuff in our culture," he tells OrganicAuthority.com. "Salt is essential for human existence. If we could suck all the salt out of your body in this moment, you'd fall over dead. How's that for an essential nutrient?
"Sodium and chloride-the key component elements of common dietary salt-are required for the proper function of virtually every cell in your body," David adds. "These minerals are intimately involved in millions of electrochemical reactions at the cellular level that occur every millisecond. At the macro level, salt is an indispensable player in fluid dynamics throughout the body. It is necessary for the proper function of the kidneys, heart, digestive process, thyroid gland and the chemistry of the blood."
Salt consumption may potentially become a problem when we exceed recommended guidelines.
"Most researchers would probably agree that reducing salt intake is warranted for those with high blood pressure, but is certainly not a cure," David says. "The advent of our high-salt diet largely corresponds to a shift in our overall diet pattern, which has us eating, as a nation, more sugar; more poor-quality, mass-produced carbohydrate foods (white-flour products); more poor-quality trans fats; and less nutrient-dense foods."
David believes salt should not shoulder the blame for America's health woes, and he encourages OrganicAuthority.com readers to focus on the big picture.
"Are you eating fresh fruits and veggies?" he asks. "Are you choosing healthy fats found in foods such as nuts, seeds, olive oil, avocado, coconut and wild fish? Are you eating high-quality organic or free-range meats, rather than the mass-produced toxic kind? If you have some good food in your diet, enjoy the salt. Find a gourmet variety, and note how different it tastes."(http://www.organicauthority.com)
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