Here is one that I have not heard of before or even considered it being a possibility. It popped up on my psoriasis radar today and is worth reading, posted on the Daily Health newsletter. Psoriasis is one of the many autoimmune conditions included in this wide range of afflictions that appear to be aggravated by excessive salt intake.
I am not a heavy user of salt and have been reducing its use progressively in the past few years. I use herbs and spices to flavour what I cook instead of relying on masses of salt. I do tend to increase my salt intake to boost my blood pressure on occasions that I sense it dropping but even that does not occur as often as it used to. Supplementing with ginseng complex capsules and CoQ10 capsules has stabilised my heart beat and blood pressure, mostly removing my reliance on salt to serve that function.
Excessive salt consumption is a big problem in the modern world of fast foods and convenience foods. In USA almost all of these foods are packed with ridiculous amounts of salt. I inadvertently bought two cans of Progresso soup a few months ago by picking up the wrong cans. I opened one and it was so unbelievably salty that I couldn't eat it. The can shows that one serving includes nearly 1/3 of the RDA for an entire day's eating. It also says that one seving is only half a can, so my quick and easy can of soup meal is giving me nearly 2/3 of my allowance for the whole day, before I add a couple of slices of bread.
A year ago my ladies took me for a birthday treat to Red Lobster, knowing my love of seafoods. Everything that we ordered was so salty that we have not been back.
A little salt is nice to draw out the natural flavours but why would I, or anybody else, want the salt to be the main flavour? Excess salt kills the natural flavours of the food. When it has been absorbed into the cells of your body it holds water, so you gain weight, encouraging other health issues.
So, I encourage you to cut down on salt intake. Instead use antioxidant herbs and spices to flavour your cooking. They will fight inflammation and, at the same time, reduce the harm that is being done by salt. Double the health benefit and at little cost.
