sodium intake
 

i am sure this question has been asked before, but how much sodium is too much. I know what the daily allowance is but, it seems impossible to stay anywhere near that. At what levels will salt start to create water weight gain?

I'm not sure how much is too much. I eat a lot of seafood, which has salt pre-installed. The only time I was able to stay under 2500 mg was during the summer when I did a raw diet.

The American Heart Association states the following on their website:
"Limiting sodium — which we get through salt, baking powder, baking soda and other substances in foods we eat — is one of the most important things that people with heart failure can do. Sodium makes the body hold on to fluid. To pump the added fluid, the heart has to work harder. People with heart failure shouldn't put this extra strain on their hearts.

Also, too much salt can worsen symptoms like swelling and shortness of breath and cause weight gain. If those symptoms become severe, the person may need to be admitted to the hospital.

Physicians often recommend keeping salt intake below 2,300 milligrams (mg) per day for most people. However, for people with heart failure, recommended sodium intake is no more than 2,000 mg per day. Most people eat considerably more than this, so it's likely that a person with congestive heart failure will need to find ways to cut down on salt. Since most salt intake comes from eating and drink prepared and packaged foods, reading food labels to determine how much sodium is in a food or beverage is a great start to lowering sodium intake."
<reference www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=336>

And although I did not find an answer to how much salt can you have before you experience weight gain, I do believe and found that your doctor would be your best person, and that he/she would likely tell you "why push it" LOL... cause excess salt in the diet reeks all kinds of havoc on our bodies, i.e. blood pressure, heart issues. So for me, I would say go by the American Heart Association's level or less. :D Or of course, ask your doctor to see what they would tell you, as every one is different.

Hey iowa girl! :wel3fc:

Well, any time you eat salty foods, like potato chips (not that you ever do) ;) there may be a momentary water gain. The most important thing is to make sure you drink water. Drinking water actually helps flush out the salt. Some people count other beverages besides water (coffee, tea, soda), and others only count water. Salt is not a problem unless you already have high blood pressure--it does not "cause" high blood pressure. Of course, any questions you have about health should be referred to your doctor or health care practitioner--I'm just giving you my nonprofessional opinion.

Obviously, avoiding salty foods is a good thing, too, if you are worried about water weight--but water weight isn't the problem for most overweight folks, it's fat.

Jay