Most of us haven’t the faintest clue how much salt we consume. We probably never give it a second thought. But should we? The answer is a very definite ‘yes. Salt is public enemy number one!
Do you know what the daily recommended allowance (RDA) for salt is? It’s 4g per day – with a maximum of 6g. The alarming fact is that most of us consume in excess of our RDA. The figure is a staggering 12g. Where does all this salt come from? Fast foods and ready meals are the worst culprits.
What’s the point of adding so much salt to our food? It’s very simple really. It helps prolong the shelf life of the food and enhances its flavor. The more we eat, the happier the food manufacturer and supermarket owner. Salt is absolutely everywhere. It’s in our breakfast cereal, candy, baked beans, very little escapes. What is surprising is that we get more than 25% of our salt from bread, rolls, bagels, and buns.
Far too many of us start the day by eating too much salt. A good cooked breakfast of bacon, eggs, sausages, and hash browns is very likely to contain more than half your recommended daily allowance. Even if you decide to skip breakfast and have a cup of coffee and an American muffin you will have consumed nearly a quarter of your RDA.
Surely salt can’t be all that bad for us? Don’t we need it in our diet? Yes, we do, but only in small amounts. Salt has an essential role to play in helping to keep the balance of fluids in our body at the right levels. It also helps in the transmission of electrical impulses in our nervous system and helping our cells absorb essential nutrients. Read this Carbofix review and learn about the best alternatives to salts that you can use in your food without worrying about your weight.
What happens when we eat too much salt? It causes us to retain too much fluid. When this happens you feel bloated. It also increases your blood pressure causing hypertension which can lead to heart attack and stroke. Too much salt is not good.
Too much salt also helps you to put on weight. It makes you feel thirsty and makes you want to drink more – which just compounds the problem. It’s easy to see why it is important to know how much salt you consume. There’s another problem. The signal our body sends to our brain when we are thirsty is very similar to the one it sends when we are hungry. Most of us mistake the signals. We answer the thirst signal with food – usually high-calorie food containing sugar and salt. The result? Weight gain.
We have to get out of the habit of eating salty foods and taking much more careful about what we buy. We need to get far better at reading food labels. We need to get into the slim habit of reducing our daily salt intake. Being aware of the effect that salt has is a useful start to reducing our intake.
