Introduction About Seasonings
"Healthy eating isn’t bland. That’s a huge myth."
After all, the high class restaurants use only whole foods to create the tastiest meals on the entire planet. So if you want to stick to a healthy diet, you have to master the art of making your whole food meals taste good.And it all starts with using the right seasonings.
Salt
Salt has been used to season food for more than 8,000 years.But somewhere in the last decades, it has been the target of a crusade by health organizations – and finally accused of causing heart disease and hypertension. Should we listen to the current scare… or lighten up and salt it up?
Choose The right Kind
Salts are not all created equal. Here’s why I recommend sticking with unrefined salt like sea salt or rock salt instead of the refined table salt you find everywhere:
Any kind of unrefined salt will do the trick: Fleur de sel, unrefined sea salt, Himalayan pink salt, etc.
Salt Is Linked To hypertension and Disease… Right?
I wish it was that simple. The “proof” that salt causes hypertension was established in the 1970s by a researcher named Lewis Dahl, who induced high blood pressure in rats by feeding them the human equivalent of over 500 grams of sodium a day – 50 times more than the average intake in the US. A very shaky proof, if you ask me.And after reviewing the facts, it’s clear that the link between salt, high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease is very thin:
- A recent study clearly shows that sodium intake does not have any association with hypertension or cardiovascular disease
- The Intersalt Study – a study often cited by the salt-reduction proponents – failed to prove the link between salt and hypertension
- Healthy people will adapt to a wide range of salt intakes without a significant change in blood pressure
- Michael Alderman – head of the American Society of Hypertension for many years – confirmed that low sodium diets aren’t proven to improve blood pressure or reduce risks of disease
- The amount of salt in our diet has remained constant for the last fifty years, despite the rise in rates of high blood pressure and heart disease
I’ve saved the best for last.
Standard hospital saline IV drips supply an average of three liters of 0.9% sodium chloride per day – the equivalent to 27 g of salt per day while in the hospital. That’s more than five times the Dietary Guideline recommendations, and yet it doesn’t change the patients’ blood pressure nor kill them instantly.
What’s The Difference Between Salt And Sodium?
Salt and sodium get confusing really fast.Here’s what you need to understand: Salt (NaCl) is made from sodium and chlorine ions that don’t weight the same amount. To convert any amount of salt in sodium: Simply multiply the amount of salt (in mg) by 39% to get the amount of sodium (in mg).
Example: 10 grams of salt (10,000 mg) X 39% equals 3,900 mg of sodium.
How Much Sodium Should I Eat?
To survive, you need about 500 mg of sodium per day. That being said, most of us want more than survival, and strive to attain better bodies and health. That’s why I suggest adding unrefined salt where necessary. Focus on improving your health instead of worrying about your salt intake. Another thing to keep in mind – Americans consume about 10g of salt per day, but at least 75% of this salt comes from processed foods. If you reduce your intake of processed foods – which you need to do anyway if you ever want to burn fat – you’ll already reduce your salt intake, leaving room to add it to your favorite meals.
Who Should Consume Less Sodium?
While most people will be just fine consuming large amounts of sodium, some people might want to reduce their intake:
- Hypertensive people that have inherited salt sensitivity
- People with chronic renal disease
- People with osteoporosis
If you’re not in any of the 3 groups above, there’s no reason on Earth why you would want to reduce your sodium intake.
Dangers Of Low Sodium
The strict sodium guidelines of the USDA (2,300 mg a day) and the American Heart Association
(1,500 mg a day) might in fact be dangerous. Low sodium intake has been shown to :
- Increase risks of dying from a stroke or heart attack
- Increase risks of cardiovascular mortality for Type 2 diabetes patients
- Increase risks of developing insulin resistance, a precursor to Type 2 diabetes
- Reduce cognitive abilities for the elderly, while increasing risks of hip fracture
The bottom line – unless you are sensitive to sodium because of a particular health condition, limiting your salt intake can be very dangerous.
Are You Salt Sensitive? Fix Your Potassium!
If you fall into the category of people who are proven to be very sensitive to sodium (often genetic), increasing your potassium intake might fix your problem. Turns out our body evolved with potassium levels many times those of sodium, as Paleolithic man consumed an estimated 10,500 mg of potassium each day, compared to a current US intake of 2,500 mg. That’s why research now proves that a diet high in potassium-rich plant foods – like dark leafy greens, salmon, avocados, mushroom, bananas, etc. – will prevent any negative effect you might have from a high sodium diet.
Do You Have High Blood Pressure? Try These
Instead of dramatically reducing your salt intake like your doc might have recommended you, try these proven ways to reduce your high blood pressure and risks of cardiovascular disease naturally.
- Increase your potassium intake
- Eat more calcium-rich foods, proven to decrease blood pressure and reduce risks of developing hypertension (calcium supplementation does NOT show the same benefits and increases risks of heart attack by 30% )
- Reduce stress in your life
- Optimize your vitamin D levels with sun exposure and supplementation
- Lower your sugar intake
- Get more sleep
- Exercise more
Always Avoid This Salt
Monosodium glutamate – or MSG – is a salt derivative that has been used as a food additive for decades. There are a lot of reasons why you want to avoid it as much as possible:
- It’s an excitatory neurotoxin that can cause side effects including severe headaches and irritability
- Estimates by the Truth in Labelling Campaign suggest that approximately 40% of the US population presently react adversely to MSG
- MSG is usually contained in chips and other processed foods – giving them this “addicting” taste
Just another good reason to ditch processed foods.
Summary--> Use unrefined salt like sea salt or Himalayan pink salt instead of refined table salt.
--> Salt is NOT linked to hypertension and cardiovascular disease, except if you have particular health conditions.
--> Limiting your salt intake can be very dangerous when you don't have a good reason to do so.
--> Eating a lot of potassium-rich foods will prevent any problems a high sodium diet might have caused on your body.
--> If you exercise a lot, make sure to get enough salt to prevent cramps and other dangerous side effects.
