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Salt is not something that you miss, once you eliminate it. Well, maybe for a week or two. But after that, you really don't want it any more. It's tastes so harsh. Now, if something is overly salted, all I can taste is salt. Yuck.
Are you getting enough salt in your diet?
I just read a report online that flies in the face of what conventional medicine has been pushing on the public for years. New research suggests not eating enough salt could be WORSE for your heart than consuming too much of it.
Yawn. Excuse my lack of enthusiasm. After all, this is old news to me – and it should be to you as well. I’ve been telling you for years that salt is good for you.
The new study was published in the online Journal of General Internal Medicine, and while it doesn’t actually come out and say that a low-salt diet is actually BAD for the heart, it does cite some intriguing stats showing that people who eat the least salt suffer from the highest rates of death as a result of heart disease. The one quarter of patients in the study who ate the least salt were – ready for this? – 80 PERCENT more likely to die from cardiac issues than the 25 percent in the study who consumed the MOST salt.
This should really be no surprise in the medical community. In spite of what you hear on TV and read in magazines, there’s no agreement in the medical community that salt is the key factor in the development of such dangerous maladies as high blood pressure and hypertension.
Dr. Hillel W. Cohen, the author of the study, finally acknowledged the questionable link between salt intake and high blood pressure. “The main argument for reducing salt in the prevention of heart disease has been that there’s a relationship between higher sodium and high blood pressure,” he said. “But when one actually looks at the numbers, the average blood pressure difference associated with quite a bit of sodium intake is very modest.”
The fact is, without salt, you’d die. It’s an essential nutrient that your body can’t manufacture on its own. It plays a critical role in regulating vital bodily function, and it’s a key element in the fluids that transport life-giving oxygen throughout the body. Salt maintains the body’s fluid balance. What’s more, the body automatically disposes of excess salt in your system. So the oft-heard claim that you can have “too much” salt in your diet? Well that’s just not physically possible.
Like all doctors making unpopular claims that fly in the face of “conventional” medical thought, Cohen hedged his bets. (So unlike me, right?) He said, “No one should run out and buy a salt shaker to improve their cardiovascular health, but we think it’s reasonable to say that different people have different needs.”
Maybe so. But the fact remains that salt is an essential need for all people. I’m happy that Cohen’s study has helped to clarify the country’s misconceptions about it.
Originally posted by Jenna
reply to post by ghostsoldier
So basically what you're saying is that you don't just want a nanny state where we don't have to make a decision on what to eat because the government has already decided what we can eat, you want a complete totalitarian state where we have no freedom of choice whatsoever.
Originally posted by butcherguy
Should we be limited in our selections of food by the government?
NO.
The formulation of PLANTERS Peanuts has indeed changed and I'm sorry you were disappointed with your most recent purchase.
With more than 100 years of history as an iconic brand and company, Planters has always looked for innovative ways to deliver high-quality, fresh-tasting nut products to consumers. We continuously listen to consumers like you and your thoughts on what you’re looking for when it comes to nuts and snacking.
In this case, we conducted a written consumer concept test where participants were asked if they would prefer regular Planters nuts or Planters nuts made with sea salt. The results found that 80 percent of consumers who read the concept said they would prefer to eat the product made with sea salt.
Maintaining the taste our consumers like you know and love was very important to us, so we did work to make sure that the familiar flavor and texture remained the same when we made this change. Planters will still deliver the high-quality, fresh-tasting nuts people know and expect from this trusted brand. We made this change in order to keep on trend with what our consumers want from nuts and their snacking experience– in this case, sea salt.
Our staff works very hard to provide the best tasting and satisfying products to the preferences of most consumers. Your opinion about the product is important to us as well and I will share your comments with our product development staff.
Thank you again for taking the time to share your thoughts.
Kim McMiller
Associate Director, Consumer Relations
Originally posted by ghostsoldier
Well the sad thing is, most people aren't interested enough to educate themselves and become fully developed responsible-sentient adult human beings. And waiting for them to kill themselves takes too long, and doesn't really achieve much anyway because they have usually passed their genes onto another generation already - so in the meantime, lets cut health-care costs.
Salt is addictive and bad for you, therefor the product is also.
And since we proved that people aren't interested in educating themselves. The government is right (in this case) to make informed choices on idiots behalf.
What do you want? Unregulated Capitalism? You know what that would lead to don't you?
I personally don't define my freedom by how many different breakfast cereals I have to choose from when I go shopping...
Catch the metaphor?
Originally posted by mblahnikluver
So now they are going to limit the amount of salt in foods? What are they going to replace it with if anything?
Originally posted by ladyinwaiting
FDA now reporting 150,000 lives per year could be saved, by just cutting the amount of sodium in processed foods.
How do they ascertain those figures? I have no idea.
Anyway....Bye guys! Good thread.