Your body requires sodium for proper muscle and nerve functioning, as well as to regulate blood pressure, according to the National Institutes of Health. Most foods naturally contain sodium including milk, celery and water. Food product manufacturers add several forms of sodium to food including sodium chloride, monosodium glutamate and baking soda. A low sodium diet helps with some health conditions. Talk to your health professional about how much sodium is right for you.
Reduce Blood Pressure
Eating a low sodium diet leads to a lower average blood pressure reading, according to a Cochrane review authored by John Smucny, M.D. from the Department of Family Medicine at State University of New York Upstate Medical University in Syracuse. The results of the review, published in the January 15, 2004 issue of the medical journal "American Family Physician" found sodium restricted diets resulted in significant reductions in diastolic and systolic blood pressure numbers--- and this effect was stronger among African-American participants. Despite the reduction in blood pressure, Smucny explains, controlled trials do not prove that reducing sodium intake reduces incidence of cardiovascular morbidity or mortality. Due to the reduced blood pressure readings, some patients discontinued antihypertensive medications.
Skeletal Health
Dietary interventions including a low sodium diet may benefit skeletal health and help prevent osteoporosis, according to a longitudinal study conducted by the Department of Medicine at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. The purpose of the study determined the efficacy of eating a low sodium diet on bone metabolism in women who have not reached menopause. During the study 40 postmenopausal African-American and Caucasian women ate a low sodium diet, 2 g daily, for six months. The results, reported in the "Journal of Bone and Mineral Metabolism," found a significant decrease in the amount of sodium and calcium excreted by the body and a decrease in a substance that indicates bone turnover. High bone turnover leads to bone loss.
Improved Circulation
The blood vessels of people on a low sodium diet have a greater ability to dilate, expand, than those consuming a typical American diet, according to a randomized research study conducted by CSIRO Human Nutrition and the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics at Flinders University in Australia. Blood vessels expand and contract, depending on the amount of blood flow present. Twenty-nine overweight and obese adults without hypertension issues participated in the study for two weeks. The results, published in the December 23, 2008 issue of the "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition" found participants on the low-sodium diet had significantly greater blood vessel dilation, lower systolic blood and lower sodium excretion in the urine.
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