Get the Salt Out Read Online Free

replenish sodium and other electrolytes.
    Illness or accident . During a bout with the flu or any type of illness that includes repeated vomiting or diarrhea, sodium can become depleted in the body and should be replaced. This same situation can occur in any type of accident where bleeding has occurred.
    Diet . Vegetarians, who consume much more potassium than sodium from plant foods, often need to add some naturally rich sodium sources or unrefined salt to their diet to better balance these two important electrolytes.
    Pregnancy . Pregnant women require more sodium to accommodate the sodium needs of the growing fetus. Care should be taken to eat additional nutrient-dense foods to meet the extra requirements for sodium and other nutrients. However, to prevent the development of pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH), pregnant women need to avoid high-salt junk foods and be sure they are getting enough protein, calories, and calcium.
    As this section has shown you, sodium needs vary widely from one individual to the next. Giving a blanket nutritional prescription for people who have so many various lifestyles and different genetic backgrounds is an invitation to trouble for our individual and collective health. The answer to our individual sodium requirements isn’t as simple as some experts would like us to believe. The truth is that some of us require more sodium and some of us require less, but all of us can benefit from getting refined salt out of our diets.

SO WHAT DO WE EAT?

    Getting the refined salt out of our diets and reducing our sodium intake to a more moderate level requires only one main strategy: to eat as naturally as possible.
    It may sound simplistic, but it’s true:
natural foods are always lower in sodium than their processed and packaged counterparts.
What is the difference between processed and natural foods? Processed foods usually come packaged in boxes, plastic bags, and cans, and are designed to sit on grocery shelves for months. Healthful, natural foods, on the other hand, are as close to their natural state as possible. They include:
    Vegetables
Fish
Whole grains
Shellfish
Legumes
Poultry
Nuts
Eggs
Seeds
Milk
Fruits
Lean meats
    All of these foods have no refined salt and all of them, except for shellfish like lobster, shrimp, and crab, are low in sodium. Shellfish, however, can be included in a low-to moderate-sodium diet because they are sources of “good” sodium, which the body can easily use, as well as sources of other important minerals. Natural foods have other benefits, too: ounce for ounce, they contain considerably more of the essential nutrients humans require than processed foods do. They are particularly rich in potassium, a mineral that balances the action of sodium in the body, and many are good sources of magnesium and calcium as well. Potassium, magnesium, and calcium are all believed to counteract the effects of excess sodium in the diet and help prevent conditions like high blood pressure and heart disease.
    Once you emphasize natural foods in your diet, refined salt no longer will be a problem. In fact, low-sodium eating will come about automatically All you have to do is combine natural foods in any way you see fit and—
voilà!
—both unhealthy forms of sodium and excessive sodium in general will go by the wayside.
    The only other thing you will need to do is fine tune your diet to find the balance of protein, carbohydrates, and fats that’s right for you. Some of us seem to thrive on higher amounts of complex carbohydrates while others are actually better designed for more protein and high-quality fats. (If this concept seems strange to you, think about the Eskimos, who eat large amounts of meat and fatty fish and practically no produce but are quite healthy.) Most of us, however, do well with an almost equal balance in our diets: protein from both animal and vegetable sources; complex carbohydrates from fresh vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and legumes; and essential