Sodium: Stop worrying about this dangerous health myth by Dr. David Eifrig
The FDA is force-feeding us a dangerous health myth again… The Food and Drug Administration will soon have voluntary guidelines asking food companies and restaurants to lower the sodium levels in food. According to FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg, “the current level of consumption [of sodium] really is higher than it should be for health.”
Longtime Retirement Millionaire readers know to ignore this sort of misinformation. As I’ve written before, sodium is only bad for you in extreme amounts… whether you’re having too little or too much. I recently spoke to a woman who told me her blood pressure was low… She drinks plenty of fluid but has little salt in her diet. I told her to increase her salt intake to reduce her symptoms. It worked immediately.
What’s even more important than worrying about sodium intake is making sure you’re getting enough magnesium and potassium (two other essential salts). Magnesium helps with mood, energy, and mental stability. Low potassium levels are more likely to increase blood pressure than high levels of sodium are.
If you’re eating a diet filled with whole fruits and green vegetables and avoiding fast food and processed foods, it’s likely your sodium levels are just fine. So stop worrying about sodium and focus on getting plenty of magnesium and potassium.
Do what I do… Add a little spinach to your salad. The leafy green is high in both potassium and magnesium.
Source: Retirement Millionaire