How much added sodium is enough?

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How much added sodium is enough?

Postby gracezw » Mon Jul 15, 2019 4:34 pm

Is checking the sodium level in blood a reliable way/the most reliable way to find out about that?

Last time I checked it was on 5/31/18. My number was 143 mmol/L, while the normal range was 134-144.
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Re: How much added sodium is enough?

Postby JeffN » Mon Jul 15, 2019 5:14 pm

gracezw wrote:Is checking the sodium level in blood a reliable way/the most reliable way to find out about that?

Last time I checked it was on 5/31/18. My number was 143 mmol/L, while the normal range was 134-144.


Serum sodium, is not directly related so dietary sodium intake.

How much is enough?
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=57097&p=574892&hilit=Sodium+115#p574892

There is no RDA/DRI for sodium but there is a recommended safe minimum of 500 mg/day though the bare minimum need is estimated to be about 115 or so but that is under ideal conditions with "maximal adaption and without active sweating" and not recommend as a goal to aim for :)

"Thus, a minimum average requirement for adults can be estimated under conditions of maximal adaptation and without active sweating as no more than 5 mEq/day, which corresponds to 115 mg of sodium or approximately 300 mg of sodium chloride per day. "

Recommended Dietary Allowances 10th Edition
Subcommittee on the Tenth Edition of the RDAs Food and Nutrition Board Commission on Life Sciences
National Research Council
ISBN: 0-309-53606-5, 302 pages, 6 x 9, (1989
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/1349.html
P 253

The 1500 is the Adequate intake (NOTE: category name changed in 2019 to Lowest CVD Risk category) which is actually 1200-1500 depending on age and health. "The Adequate Intake (AI) is set instead of an RDA if sufficient scientific evidence is not available to calculate an EAR. The AI is based on observed or experimentally determined estimates of nutrient intake by a group (or groups) of healthy people." The AHA, ACC, NHLB, etc all use the 1500 too.

https://www.nap.edu/read/10925/chapter/8#270

"The AI for sodium is set for young adults at 1.5 g (65 mmol)/day (3.8 g of sodium chloride) to ensure that the overall diet provides an adequate intake of other important nutrients and to cover sodium sweat losses in unacclimatized individuals who are exposed to high temperatures or who become physically active as recommended in other dietary reference intakes (DRI) reports. This AI does not apply to individuals who lose large volumes of sodium in sweat, such as competitive athletes and workers exposed to extreme heat stress (e.g., foundry workers and fire fighters). The AI for sodium for older adults and the elderly is somewhat less, based on lower energy intakes, and is set at 1.3 g (55 mmol)/day for men and women 50 through 70 years of age, and at 1.2 g (50 mmol)/day for those 71 years of age and older. "

The 2300 is the Tolerable Upper Limits (NOTE: Category name changed to reduced risk for CVD in 2019). This is defined as "The highest level of nutrient intake that is likely to pose no risk of adverse health effects for almost all individuals in the general population. As intake increases above the UL, the risk of adverse effects increases."

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Re: How much added sodium is enough?

Postby Lyndzie » Mon Jul 15, 2019 6:12 pm

Jeff, this info is so helpful! When I do no salt I start experiencing postural hypotension, but not when I follow the recommendations of just adding salt at the table and in condiments. My estimates put me at around 1500 mg/day. I’m glad to hear that is considered “adequate.”
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Re: How much added sodium is enough?

Postby gracezw » Tue Jul 16, 2019 12:07 pm

JeffN, thanks a lot. I am still in the middle of reading your post and links. I will have questions for you later soon!
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Re: How much added sodium is enough?

Postby f1jim » Thu Jul 18, 2019 9:32 am

What do you suppose is the number of people that don't get enough sodium?
Bet it's minuscule!
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Re: How much added sodium is enough?

Postby JeffN » Thu Jul 18, 2019 9:38 am

f1jim wrote:What do you suppose is the number of people that don't get enough sodium?
Bet it's minuscule!
f1jim


:)

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Re: How much added sodium is enough?

Postby gracezw » Fri Jul 19, 2019 11:25 pm

Jeff,

I took time reading your responses and links. Thank you!

You said,

“I would say I do recommend s-s free(no-added-sodium, or 200-500mg sodium/day) but allow for both(s-s free and low sodium of 1600mg/day).”

Kenny said that he was fine for no added sodium.

For the past 6-8 months, I have been very careful about added sodium. It has been about 100mg/day. My blood pressure has dropped from the higher end of the normal range to almost 90/60. And the well-controlled amount of added sodium has helped me reach down to my ideal weight.

I also hope that minimizing added sodium would help me maximize my heart health by making up for my high blood cholesterol. I have been having high cholesterol (both total and LDL) even with no animal products, with minimal oil or increasingly no oil, probably due to genetics – my mom died of a heart attack at 62 and had had high cholesterol.

I feel surprised to hear you say that blood sodium is not related to dietary sodium. I wonder whether it is a concern that my dietary sodium may be too low. What symptoms do I watch out for if it is too low? When I googled them, the low sodium symptoms seem to be for low blood sodium.
Last edited by gracezw on Fri Jul 19, 2019 11:30 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: How much added sodium is enough?

Postby gracezw » Fri Jul 19, 2019 11:27 pm

Jeff, this graph is great! I have save it! Thank you!

JeffN wrote:
f1jim wrote:What do you suppose is the number of people that don't get enough sodium?
Bet it's minuscule!
f1jim


:)

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Re: How much added sodium is enough?

Postby human vegetable » Sat Jul 20, 2019 11:45 am

When trying to assess the minimum salt requirement, this always seems about avoiding sodium deficiency. I'm wondering whether the other element in the salt molecule, chloride, is also something to worry about.

When reading up on chloride deficiency, this only seems to happen with extreme diarrhea and dehydration. However, I've also read that chloride is essential, e. g. for forming stomach acid, and that a lack of salt may result in maldigestion. This means, chloride is a necessary part of the diet, and there must be some minimum requirement, however small.

Are there dietary sources of chloride other than salt? Should one make an effort to include them on a low or no salt diet?
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Re: How much added sodium is enough?

Postby JeffN » Mon Jul 22, 2019 7:03 am

human vegetable wrote:When trying to assess the minimum salt requirement, this always seems about avoiding sodium deficiency.


There is no minimum requirement for salt, only for sodium, which for most of us, unless we are on an overly restrictive diet, it is a non-issue. Chloride is easily found in plants, so much so there is no RDA for it.

All this is covered in detail in my salt threads

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Re: How much added sodium is enough?

Postby human vegetable » Mon Jul 22, 2019 12:16 pm

Jeff, thanks for the clarification on chloride!
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