Salt entered the human diet many thousands of years ago, today in cooking almost no dish can do without it, and in small quantities, it is even added to sweet pastries and desserts. A salt cellar with small white crystals is on the table in every home and catering establishment.
We add salt to food only because it tastes better with it. There is a lot of information about its possible harm to the body, and for some diseases, it is recommended to sharply limit or completely stop using it. Sodium chloride (it is this chemical compound that we call edible salt) is one of those substances that are sufficient in food, therefore, in fact, there is no need for a healthy person to additionally consume salt. But we keep adding it to our food anyway. If you do not abuse salty, then there will be no harm to the body, while we will enjoy the taste of food.
A diet that completely excludes salt or sharply restricts its intake is prescribed by doctors for medical reasons. The word "salt-free" scares many since it is almost impossible to imagine cooking without sodium chloride. But, unfortunately, sometimes the rejection of salt is vital, it is not for nothing that it is sometimes called the white death.
Medical indications
Excessive salt intake leads to fluid retention and high blood pressure.
The main principle of this concept of nutrition, as the name implies, is the exclusion of table salt from the diet. This applies not only to adding sodium chloride to dishes but also to the exclusion of any semi-finished products, salted, pickled, smoked, and other products that contain salt.
The properties of salt are well known: its excess retains water in the body, which can negatively affect the functioning of various organs. First of all, the cardiovascular system suffers, since an increase in the volume of fluid in the body leads to an increase in the BCC (circulating blood volume), and, as a result, blood pressure rises. That is why people suffering from hypertension and other diseases of the cardiovascular system should be sure to limit salt. In therapeutic diets for heart disease, the daily salt intake is limited to 5 g, and all the salt entering the body must be taken into account.
An increase in the volume of fluid in the body leads to an increase in the load on the kidneys, and when they fail to cope with their task - the removal of fluid begins to "go" into the tissue. That is why swelling is one of the most common symptoms of kidney disease. For any pathologies of this paired organ, it is also recommended to limit sodium chloride in the diet.
Edema syndrome can accompany not only kidney disease, as many believe, but also diseases of the liver and other organs, therefore, if a patient develops edema, sodium chloride is necessarily limited in his diet.
When it comes to limiting salt intake in the presence of certain diseases, such a bland diet is healing. However, many people experience themselves completely abandoning salt in order to lose excess weight. There are many volunteers who follow the Chinese salt-free diet for 1-3 weeks in order to lose weight and cleanse their bodies.
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Can a salt-free diet be harmful?
Salt is used in food to improve its taste.
It should be noted that now we will talk about the exclusion of salt from the diet while maintaining its calorie content, serving size, and the usual set of products.
Many are interested in whether our body will lack sodium chloride, which, of course, is important and necessary. The answer to this question is unequivocal: "No." There is more than enough salt in food, especially vegetables and dairy products, so we only need a salt shaker to improve the taste of food, and not to replenish sodium reserves in the body.
Based on this, we can conclude that a salt-free diet, with rare exceptions, cannot bring harm to the body, restriction or complete rejection of sodium chloride will only benefit it. And these very rare exceptions, when the use of salt is necessary, include situations in which the body loses a lot of water and, accordingly, salts. For example, hard physical labor, conditions accompanied by excessive sweating, vomiting, and diarrhea. In such cases, the amount of salt is not only not limited but is additionally replenished with a salt drink (special solutions and mineral water). In severe cases, intravenous fluids may even be necessary.
Based on the foregoing, we can conclude that reducing salt intake is beneficial for everyone, even for absolutely healthy people. It should be noted that there is a lot of it in semi-finished products, fast food, canned food, marinades, and pickles, so these products are the first to be excluded from the diet for many diseases. Many doctors recommend removing the salt shaker from the table and getting rid of the habit of adding salt to food on the plate, especially if it was cooked with added salt. And in order to diversify and improve the taste of food, you can use various spices, herbs, garlic, lemon juice, and other seasonings.
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