Know how eating too much salt affects your body
Learn how eating too much salt affects your body, from raising blood pressure and causing bloating to impacting kidney and heart health.
We all know salt is one of the essential nutrients but if we are taking too much then it can lead to gradually damaging our bodies.
Sodium is vital in balancing fluid levels as well as in aiding nerve and muscle function, but too much sodium can heighten the risk of certain conditions developing.
One of the more worrying issues associated with eating too many salts is high blood pressure, by eating too much sodium your body will automatically start holding onto excess water causing you to have a higher blood pressure and placing more pressure on the walls of your arteries and blood vessels.
A persistently high blood pressure will put extra strain on your body and raise the risk of heart disease and stroke.
The kidneys are also put under undue pressure because they have to remove the excess sodium from your body, and sustained overload of sodium can lead to a decline in kidney function and sometimes kidney damage.
When people eat a lot of salts they will often become bloated through the retention of excess water and also feel thirsty after eating.
As we eat too many salts, we lose calcium from the bones. While salt on its own may not be sufficient to cause osteoporosis it may contribute towards it given the right combination of factors.
Look to purchase food at supermarkets that has the label of containing low quantities of salt and try to cut down on the foods that can contain high amounts of sodium and salt, especially packaged foods like fast-foods, ready meals, noodles, chips and crisps.
If people reduce their intake of salty foods and use other forms of flavour like spices and herbs they would dramatically notice the difference in their body.
