To Salt or Not to SaltThousands of years ago, Romans lined their plumbing with lead. Bad idea, right? Lead is a neurotoxin. Some historians believe this might have been one of the reasons the empire fell. But here's the headscratcher: The Romans weren't in the dark. They actually knew that lead exposure could make people loco. But they went ahead and put it in their plumbing anyway. What the heck were they thinking? Who knows? But one thing we do know is that modern policy makers can be just as short sighted as the ancients when it comes to dumb health decisions. That's right, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. I'm looking at you. According to HealthDay, CDC honchos have seen the evidence about safe sodium intake, but they're still not budging an inch. And that mule-headed stubbornness is responsible for a disastrous recommendation -- especially for seniors. The CDC says that 2,300 mg is the safe upper limit for daily sodium. But when you reach age 50, the daily maximum drops to 1,500 mg. A CDC spokesperson told HealthDay that "Nearly everyone benefits from reduced sodium consumption." Oh brother. That "advice" is worth as much as a three dollar bill. For the American Journal of Hypertension, researchers looked at 25 sodium studies. And this is EVIDENCE -- something mainstreamers are always crowing about. They say you can't just go off, willy nilly, making recommendations unless they're based on solid research. Agreed! And this is the newest round of sodium evidence they're happily ignoring… The lead researcher told HealthDay that daily salt intake above 12,000 mg is linked with higher risk of heart disease and mortality. Now, he's not suggesting that 12,000 is a safe upper limit. But it gives you an idea of how hog wild you have to go with the salt shaker to put yourself in jeopardy. More importantly, the study came to the very same conclusion that the Institute of Medicine came to last year. And it couldn't be clearer: When salt intake is too low it sets up the same heart risks of very high salt consumption. And it's not just your heart at risk with too little salt. Your brain needs sodium too or your dementia risk goes up. Sodium also helps your body absorb nutrients -- a crucial concern for the elderly. And your nerves and muscles simply don't work as well unless you're getting sufficient sodium in your diet. The Institute of Medicine determined that sodium intake shouldn't go lower than 2,300 mg per day. That's right -- the IOM's lowest daily limit is the same as the CDC's highest! But the new study brings the lower limit up even higher. Researchers say the numbers show that the safest intake is between 2,645 and 4,945 mg per day. That upper limit of nearly 5,000 mg is probably enough to make a few CDC bureaucrats faint. But then, they might be prone to fainting spells since they're clearly not getting enough salt in their diets. As I've mentioned before, the REAL problem with sodium isn't salt, it's junk sodium. Check this link to read about the brain-numbing type of sodium that's hidden in thousands of processed foods. Yours in good health, Bob Reagan Sources: Salt Guidelines Too Low: Study (healthday.com) No Benefit Seen in Sharp Limits on Salt in Diet (nytimes.com) To start receiving your own copy of the Health e-Tips, visit: http://www.wrightnewsletter.com/etips/freecopy.html |