Can you counteract eating too much salt by drinking more
water? By Ewang Lilian
“If you eat much salt, also make sure you drink much water; the
water will flush out the excess salt.”
A nurse friend once told me,
Honestly, I was not convinced by that statement.
Can our bodies really flush out excess salt as easily as we rinse off
soap in the shower?
But as I delved deeper into the science behind it, I realized there’s a
beautiful relationship between water and sodium within our bodies.
They’re in this intricate dance, maintaining a delicate balance.
When we savor a salty meal, extra sodium enters our bloodstream,
causing a bit of an imbalance.
WHO recommendation
Every cook will tell you more salt calls for more water.
The same happens in the body. Excess salt in the bloodstream
triggers the brain to ask for more water.
This is why you can feel thirsty after eating a salty meal.
But here’s the fascinating twist: your body isn’t necessarily asking
for an excessive amount of water. It simply needs a helping hand to
redistribute water from areas with lower salt content to the
bloodstream.
And these “water sources” include the small intestine, where it finds
the water you’ve been sipping or the moisture in your food.
Unless you want to blow out your small intestines, you don’t need to
drink two liters of water after a salty meal.
The key here is to stay adequately hydrated. Typically, two liters of
water a day will suffice to keep you feeling great.
That is the best you can do, then let your body take care of the excess
salt. It has an ingenious mechanism for that.
Forget about punishing yourself with excess water.
Now, let’s talk about what happens when you’re not adequately
hydrated. Your body starts retaining water.
It signals your kidneys to release less water in your urine, leading to
increased water absorption in your body. You’ll notice your urine
becomes more concentrated in such situations.
If the body has a mechanism to eliminate excess salt, you may be
wondering, why all the fuss about salt?
Funny as may sound, the problem with eating too much salt is that
more salt calls for more water.
When there’s a high concentration of salt in your bloodstream, your
body attempts to dilute it by ushering more water into your
bloodstream.
This can lead to added pressure on your blood vessels and strain on
your heart, which tirelessly pumps blood to the rest of your body.
If you make it a habit of eating salty meals, there will always be more
salt in the bloodstream asking for more water. Thus constant
pressure on your blood vessels.
Over time, this can increase the risk of health issues like high blood
pressure and heart disease.
Now, it’s clear that drinking more water isn’t the magic solution to
handling excess salt in your meals.
So, what can you do differently? Consider meals rich in potassium.
Potassium, often the unsung hero, has the power to relax your blood
vessels. It does this through a process known as the sodiumpotassium pump, actively transporting sodium out of the cell and
ushering potassium in. The result? Relaxed blood vessels.
Moreover, potassium helps your body eliminate excess sodium more
efficiently by blocking sodium reabsorption in the kidneys.
The next time you savor a salty meal, consider a change in your
routine. Instead of reaching for another glass of water, why not
indulge in an avocado spinach salad or a bowl of watermelon,
mango, and papaya? This not only trims down your salt intake but
also lavishes your body with enough potassium to counteract the
salt’s effects.
Your body will undoubtedly appreciate this thoughtful approach.
After all, it’s all about finding the right balance.