Keto Diet: Monitoring One's Sodium Intake

From a recent article I read in AARP Bulletin (October 2017) medical professionals are debating over what is too much sodium in one’s diet?   For years, high blood pressure has been linked to sodium intake.  The average American adult consumes about 3400 milligrams of sodium a day through a diet rich in salt.  However, the federal government recommends that to keep blood pressure down, people over 50 years of age should consume less than 1500 mg per day.

Of course, over the years I’m uncertain as to whether I should believe anything our federal government says.  But, on this topic, I may agree with them.  I’ve noticed since I’ve been on the Keto diet, my ankles no longer swell, making it difficult to walk.  I know it has to do with no longer eating process foods containing lots of sodium. 

Recently, I discovered ‘why’ my husband was having a hard time with his blood pressure.  He was extremely moody and difficult to get along with.  We discovered that even some of the food we eat on the Keto diet, was too much salt for his body to handle.  As it turns out, salt affects people differently.  According to L. Gabriel Navar, chair of the Department of Physiology and director for the Center of Biomedical Research Excellence in Hypertension and Renal Biology at Tulane University Medical Center in New Orleans, “It’s not how much salt you consume, but whether your body can process the sodium in contains.”

Not everyone can handle a lot of salt, much like my spouse and me.  About half of our population is salt sensitive.  When it comes to consuming salt, adults with this sensitivity can easily see their blood pressure climb, usually about 10 points. Unfortunately, scientists have yet to develop an easy to administer test for salt sensitivity.
​
So, what does one do?  It’s important that one must know their limits.  I know when I’ve had too much sodium, since my ankles will swell.  Since I’ve been on the Keto diet, I no longer have this problem, since sodium is much easier to monitor.