Also called: Also called: Salt
Table salt is made up of the elements sodium and chlorine - the technical name for salt is sodium chloride. Your body needs some sodium to work properly. It helps with the function of nerves and muscles. It also helps to keep the right balance of fluids in your body. Your kidneys control how much sodium is in your body. If you have too much and your kidneys can't get rid it, sodium builds up in your blood. This can lead to high blood pressure. High blood pressure can lead to other health problems.
Most people in the U.S. get more sodium in their diets than they need. A key to healthy eating is choosing foods low in salt and sodium. Doctors recommend you eat less than 2.4 grams per day. That equals about 1 teaspoon of table salt a day. Reading food labels can help you see how much sodium is in prepared foods.
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
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Reduce Salt and Sodium in Your Diet
(National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute) - http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/hbp/prevent/sodium/sodium.htm
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Sodium(American Heart Association) - http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4708
Also available in Spanish http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=3041569
- Sodium(Merck & Co., Inc.) - http://www.merck.com/mmhe/sec12/ch155/ch155k.html
- Sodium: Are You Getting Too Much?(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/sodium/NU00284/METHOD=print
- High Sodium Levels Don't Raise Blood Pressure(10/24/2008, HealthDay) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_70849.html
- Salt Contributes to Resistant High Blood Pressure(09/19/2008, HealthDay) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_69502.html
- Low-Birth-Weight Babies at Risk for Salt Sensitivity(08/11/2008, HealthDay) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_68026.html
- More News on Dietary Sodium http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/alphanews_d.html#dietarysodium
- Sodium Content (in Milligrams) of Selected Foods per Common Measure(Dept. of Agriculture) - Large PDF file - http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/Data/SR18/nutrlist/sr18a307.pdf
- Low-Sodium Diet: Why Is Processed Food So Salty?(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/food-and-nutrition/AN00350/METHOD=print
- Water Softeners: How Much Sodium Do They Add?(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/sodium/AN00317/METHOD=print
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Cut Down on Salt and Sodium(Healthy Roads Media) - Requires Flash Player - http://www.healthyroadsmedia.org/english/Files/flv/engsalt.htm
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Sodium, Dietary(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/condition=%22Sodium,+Dietary%22
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Dietary Sodium(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/intervention=sodium+AND+(diet+OR+dietary)
- Article: Salty snacks and obesity--an unexpected link? - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18828183&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: Are all individuals equally sensitive in the blood pressure to... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18788465&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: Association between blood pressure responses to the cold pressor test... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18779460&tool=MedlinePlus
- Dietary Sodium -- see more articles - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=sodium,dietary[majr]+AND+humans[mh]+AND+english[la]+AND+(review[pt]+OR+guideline[pt]+OR+clinical+trial[pt]+OR+jsubsetk[text]+OR+patient+education+handout[pt]+OR+systematic[sb]+OR+jsubsetn[text]+OR+jsubsetaim[text])+NOT+(editorial[pt]+OR+letter[pt]+OR+case+reports[pt])&doptcmdl=summary&cmd_current=Limits&pmfilter_EDatLimit=last+1+Year&tool=MedlinePlus
- Dietary Sodium - http://vsearch.nlm.nih.gov/vivisimo/cgi-bin/query-meta?v:project=medlineplus&binning-state=group%3d%3dMedical%20Encyclopedia&query=Dietary+Sodium
- Nutrient Lists(Dept. of Agriculture) - Links to PDF - http://www.ars.usda.gov/Main/docs.htm?docid=15869
- Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion - http://www.cnpp.usda.gov/
- Food and Drug Administration - http://www.fda.gov/
- Food and Nutrition Information Center - http://fnic.nal.usda.gov/
- Food and Nutrition Service - http://www.fns.usda.gov/fns/
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National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute - http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/
- High Blood Pressure - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/highbloodpressure.html
- Nutrition - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/nutrition.html
- Food and Nutrition - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/foodandnutrition.html
The primary NIH organization for research on Dietary Sodium is the NIH Office of Dietary Supplements - http://dietary-supplements.info.nih.gov/
Dietary Sodium - Multiple Languages - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/languages/dietarysodium.html