Too much salt on the table is bad for the heart

This is nothing new. Or at least it shouldn’t. For years now, doctors, especially cardiologists, have not missed an opportunity to remind us that table salt is not good for health. But…

By now, the fact that the daily intake of an excessive amount of salt is correlated, in the long run, with a marked increase in the risk of heart attack and stroke should also know the walls. But this is not the case.

Yet there is no shortage of research in this area. For example, a recent study showed that five grams more salt per day than the maximum recommended daily intake (5 grams) is enough to increase the risk of stroke by 23 percent and cardiovascular disease by 17 percent.

The necessary salt and superfluous salt

Under normal conditions our body eliminates daily from 0.1 to 0.6 g of sodium, a quota that can reach, in particular conditions (prolonged sweating), up to 3.5 grams.

And, in principle, the sodium naturally contained in food would already be sufficient to replenish those quantities.

Therefore the salt that we add to our dishes (a teaspoon of salt, which is equivalent to about 5 grams, contains more or less 0.4 grams of sodium) is often superfluous.

And also harmful. It can in fact perform a pro-inflammatory action, induce oxidative stress and an increase in the rigidity of the arterial walls, as well as increase blood volume.

All this means an increase in blood pressure and, consequently, in an increase in the probability of incurring vascular events affecting the heart and brain.

How much the average Italian “overcomes”

According to the World Health Organization, the daily salt requirement of our body is 2-3 grams (about a third of a teaspoon) while, on average, an Italian adult ingests about 10 grams a day.

A very unhealthy habit if we think that, as revealed by the data of the MINISAL-GIRCSI project, if we could reduce our daily salt intake by a teaspoon, we could save 67,000 heart attacks and 40,000 strokes every year.

But it would also be enough to decrease by just one gram per day to ensure a drastic reduction in such adverse events.

We eat it without realizing it

According to some surveys, sodium added as table salt represents only 36 percent of the daily total introduced by Italians.

Of the remaining part, 10 percent comes from the natural content of food while the largest share (54%) is taken with foods consumed outside the home and with processed, artisanal and industrial foods. And it’s not always mentioned on nutrition labels.

Among the processed products of our usual diet, the main source of sodium is represented by foods that we do not commonly consider “at risk”: bread and bakery products, crackers, breadsticks, but also biscuits, snacks, croissants and breakfast cereals.

They contain more salt than we think and consume every day, in higher amounts than foods that are notoriously salty and to which it is easier to pay attention, such as sausages, cheeses, canned fish or french fries.

Here is the list of food sources in which sodium is hidden.

• 30 gr of breakfast cereals – 0.8 g
• Simple croissant – 0.4 g
• Bread 1 medium slice – 0.4 g
• Snack (sponge cake type) – 0,3 g
• 2-4 biscuits – 0.1 g
• Prosciutto crudo 3-4 medium slices – 3,2 g
• Salame Milano 8-10 medium slices – 1,9 g
• 5 preserved table olives – 1.1 g
• 1 bag of chips – 0.7 g
• 100 gr of provolone cheese 1.8 g of salt
• 1 cheese 0,6 g
• Cooked ham 3-4 medium slices 0,9 g
• 100 gr of cow mozzarella – 0.5 g
• 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese – 0.2 g
• 1 can of tuna in oil (drained) – 0,4 g

Reduce quantities in six steps

Habits, especially eating habits, are not easy to change. To reduce the amount of salt ingested every day, however, you can take some simple steps.

1. First of all, we use as little salt as possible during food preparation: less salt in pasta water, salad, meat, sauces… And we use a small teaspoon to salt instead of doing it with our hands.
2. We learn to cook with spices and aromatic herbs: they give a specific aroma to food allowing to reduce salt without sacrificing taste.
3. Lemon juice and vinegar also halve the addition of salt and obtain equally tasty dishes.
4. When we go shopping, we pay attention to the salt content of the products we buy, including bread, cereals and sweets, as well as cheeses, sausages, preserved meats.
5. We don’t bring the salt shaker to the table.
6. We avoid or minimize the use of stock cubes, preserves and industrial sauces.