"Healthy by eating" series | What is a low-salt diet? Doctors recommend eating this way

Salt is the most important seasoning in our daily life. It can be said that salt is the companion of delicious food. However, according to the eating habits of Chinese residents, there is a general phenomenon of excessive salt intake. Most of the foods in our daily diet, such as rice, noodles, vegetables, fruits, and meat, contain a small amount of natural sodium salt. A large amount of chemical substances are added to the increasingly abundant refined foods, which also hide a large amount of sodium salt, such as sodium nitrite in preservatives. In addition, the sodium salt we add when cooking, the superposition of triple sodium salt intake can easily lead to increased sodium salt intake. A high-salt diet can easily cause high blood pressure, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, chronic kidney disease and even gastric cancer, which seriously affects people's health.

The World Health Organization stipulates that a normal adult should control their daily sodium intake to about 5g, including the salt content of condiments such as dark soy sauce and soy sauce added in our daily cooking. From a health perspective, we should limit our salt intake to about 3-4g per day, 5-10ml of soy sauce, and eat less or no pickled foods.

In addition, the sodium-potassium balance in the human body is also very important. Potassium ions are mainly present in cells, while sodium ions are mainly present outside cells. The dynamic balance of the concentrations of the two inside and outside cells is an important basis for maintaining the body fluid volume, acid-base balance, and normal cell function. Sodium intake should not be too high, and potassium intake should not be too low. We should consume more foods with high potassium content, such as winter melon, avocado, banana, green leafy vegetables, broccoli, pumpkin, and some medicinal and edible foods such as white lentils, etc., to maintain the sodium-potassium balance in the body and truly eat for a healthy body.

(This article was scientifically reviewed by Li Suyun, deputy director of nutrition at the Cancer Hospital of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and doctor of nutrition medicine.)