How excess salt in your food affects your body

I am writing this after both my body and brain had a bad reaction after three days of eating food with a high content of sodium (salt).

I was not at home for most of the week, thus, not eating my usual very simple, uncomplicated, and most importantly unsalted food. I was in Helsinki attending the Slush technology startup conference. This means that all what I was eating was the food served in the Media Area.

I am appreciative of the effort they made by providing us with nutrition all day long while we worked there. The food was, indeed, delicious. It was all vegan, vegetarian, and gluten free. In theory, it should have all been super healthy, right? Wrong.

Wrong because they obviously added tons of salt to it, which then made something intended to be healthy become unhealthy. Also, because I don’t add any extra salt to anything I normally eat, any amount of salt that I consume is too much. And it was three days of eating very salty food.

I had a feeling of having poison running through my veins. My face, hands, and whole body started to get bloated. On the last day at the conference, I looked like a monster. It was not just the looks but how I was feeling, and it was not good.

So, what is what happens in your body when you consume an excess of salt in your food?

When you are holding on to more sodium, your body tries to dilute it with water, increasing your blood volume and causing you to retain fluid. As a result, the excessive thirst, bloating, and blood pressure rise. In my case, this lasted for three days, but if you’re frequently consuming excess salt this process strains your heart, blood vessels, and kidneys.

I have always tried to prevent future health complications. So, my habit of not adding any salt to my food started when I was in my early twenties. Being mindful of the signs associated with excess salt intake can help you prevent potential complications associated with excessive salt consumption. Signs may include: bloating, thirst, frequent urination, high blood pressure, swelling, headaches, fatigue, and palpitations.

Did you know that depressed people have a higher level of a hormone that causes the body to retain sodium? I learned about this only recently. It surprised me quite a bit.

Diets higher in sodium are associated with an increased risk of developing high blood pressure, which is a major cause of stroke and heart disease. My maternal uncle suffered a stroke when he was rather young, so this also made me be aware of what things are better to be avoided as a preventative measure.

Despite what many people think, most dietary sodium (over 70%) comes from eating packaged and prepared foods and not from table salt added to food when cooking or eating.

Some of the foods I consumed during those three days included vegan sausages, vegan cold cuts, vegan cheese, giant (most likely canned) beans prepared in a sauce which was pretty salty, bagels with sun dried tomatoes and other stuffing, and so on.

It’s a well-known fact that too much salt in our diet raises the risk of cardiovascular disease and high blood pressure, which is exactly what I am preventing by not consuming extra salt.

However, it is less known that brain-related problems such as cerebrovascular disease, stroke, and cognitive impairment, have all been linked to excess salt and consumption of foods high in sodium.

The brain is particularly sensitive to changes in the sodium level in the blood. Therefore, symptoms of brain dysfunction, such as sluggishness (lethargy) and confusion, occur first. If the sodium level in blood falls quickly, symptoms tend to develop rapidly and be more severe.

Drinking plenty of water can help flush any excess salt from the body. Drinking plenty of water also restores electrolyte balance. In other words, adequate hydration is crucial for maintaining healthy sodium levels and supporting overall well-being.

So, you know, try to stay away from processed foods and excess salt in your food. Ideally, try to reduce the amount of salt that you consume. Your body and organs will thank you.