Low sodium salt is to add part of potassium chloride to edible salt to reduce the content of sodium, thus controlling the intake of sodium and reducing the incidence of cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension, although its salinity is not as high as pure sodium salt. Nevertheless, low-sodium salt is still resisted by some people, who worry that on the one hand, being rich in potassium chloride will increase the risk of hyperkalemia, which is not good for the heart, and on the other hand, more low-sodium salt will be put into cooking. Today, this article answers the above questions once and teaches you how to eat salt scientifically.
Low sodium salt actually has higher health value.
At present, the low sodium salt on the market generally contains 65% sodium chloride, 25% potassium chloride and 10% magnesium chloride. Compared with pure sodium salt, the content of sodium chloride is reduced by 35%, but in fact, the salinity can still be kept above 80%, which will hardly cause overcooking. Potassium and sodium are both essential electrolytes in our body, and a certain content can maintain the beating of the heart and regulate the changes of blood pressure.
For health, too high or too low potassium and sodium content is very unfavorable. Excessive sodium content will hinder the excretion of water in the body, increase blood volume and lead to hypertension; However, too high potassium content will hinder heart conduction, inhibit heart beating, and seriously lead to cardiac arrest.
For most normal people, the kidney can regulate water and salt metabolism, and a certain amount of potassium can be excreted through the kidney. At the same time, potassium can limit the effect of sodium, promote sodium excretion, reduce water and sodium retention and reduce the occurrence of hypertension. Therefore, as long as the renal function is normal, eating low sodium salt will not increase the risk of hyperkalemia, and it is not harmful to the heart.
On the contrary, due to the decrease of sodium intake and proper potassium supplementation, the occurrence of hypertension is reduced, but it is beneficial to the heart, so low sodium salt actually has higher health care value.
How to choose salt in daily life
1. Healthy people
For most healthy people, pure sodium salt or low sodium salt can be used in daily life, but it should be noted that the daily intake of salt should not exceed 6g. For some special people, you can refer to the following to choose salt.
2. Patients with hypertension
Hypertension patients need to strictly limit sodium intake, so it is recommended to use low sodium salt first. Of course, if you choose pure sodium salt, as long as you can strictly control the daily intake not to exceed the 5g limit recommended by the World Health Organization, it is also possible.
3. Patients with renal insufficiency
Because the kidney can excrete too much potassium in the body, but when the renal function is not complete, the amount of potassium discharged is reduced, so patients with renal insufficiency are prone to hyperkalemia when using low sodium salt, so such patients should not choose low sodium salt, nor should patients with adrenal cortical insufficiency.
4. Patients with hyperthyroidism
Because iodine is the raw material for synthesizing thyroxine, hyperthyroidism patients have already secreted too much thyroxine, and the salt we eat every day contains a certain amount of iodine, which is not conducive to the disease control of hyperthyroidism patients. Therefore, it is suggested that such patients choose non-iodized salt, or dry ordinary edible salt or fry it in a pot to make iodine evaporate as much as possible before eating.
In short, low sodium salt will not damage the heart. On the contrary, people pay more and more attention to health today, and low-salt diet is our main way of life. Let's talk about scientific and healthy salt first.