One of the important causes of hypertension is excessive intake of salt. But does that mean we will be healthy if we consume less salt? Not necessarily. What are the dangers of consuming too little salt? Why is it said so?
The value of salt
Salt mainly consists of sodium chloride, and it also contains elements such as iodine, potassium, and calcium.
Sodium chloride is a very important electrolyte in the body, playing a crucial role in maintaining fluid balance, mediating nerve conduction, and participating in muscle contraction.
Salt is very common in daily life and is one of the essential household items. It even rose to the status of strategic materials during certain historical periods, highlighting its medicinal properties.
Most foods contain a certain amount of salt, which is essential for enhancing the flavor of the food.
The relationship between salt and blood pressure
Salt can affect renal water metabolism. Sodium ions can inhibit water excretion, thus having a water-retaining effect. The increase in blood volume naturally raises blood pressure.
In addition, sodium ions can also affect the function of endothelial cells in blood vessels, leading to vasoconstriction and elevated blood pressure.
The physiological function of sodium ions, which is originally normal, is damaged due to long-term high sodium intake. The most critical point is that the effect of sodium ions on raising blood pressure has a relatively minor impact on normal individuals, but it is more significant for hypertensive patients.
Studies have shown that the same high-salt diet can increase systolic blood pressure by 5.4 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure by 2.8 mmHg in hypertensive patients, while in the normal blood pressure population, it is only 2.4 mmHg and 1.0 mmHg respectively.
The harm of sodium ions also lies in their ability to exacerbate the severity of complications such as heart disease and stroke caused by hypertension. Therefore, advocating salt restriction is also reasonable.
Is low salt always good?
Sodium is a very important cation in the body, with diverse biological functions. Therefore, high sodium is indeed not good, but low sodium is not necessarily healthy.
Although the kidneys have a strong sodium conservation function (more intake leads to more excretion, less intake leads to less excretion, no intake leads to no excretion), the same principle does not apply to skin excretion. This is why salt supplementation is needed in summer to maintain electrolyte balance and prevent heatstroke.
Therefore, long-term low-salt diet will inevitably pose a potential threat of hyponatremia.
In pathological conditions, low blood sodium can cause clinical manifestations such as fatigue, nausea, vomiting, muscle spasms, and disturbances in internal homeostasis. Even hidden hyponatremia (being below the average value of sodium ions for a long time) can have adverse consequences for health.
