Sodium and Bleeding

Sodium holds a unique place in health maintenance, being both vital to life and potentially harmful. It supports the most basic functions of life, such as heart rate and blood pressure. However, in excess, it can negatively impact the very functions it serves by increasing your risk of heart disease and stroke. To understand the effects of sodium and bleeding, you must begin at the cellular level, where sodium helps ensure nervous system function.

Function of Sodium

Sodium, along with potassium, helps maintain normal function in the nervous system and all life processes it controls. This action occurs because of the positive electrical charge that sodium has. The differences in concentrations of sodium and potassium outside and within cells is called the membrane potential. Regulation of these concentrations is vital for heart and nervous system function. Maintenance of the membrane potential accounts for up to 40 percent of your body's resting energy use. Sodium also regulates water balance in the body, something in which bleeding can directly impact.

Maintenance of Blood Volume

An average-size man will have about 1.5 gallons of blood in his body. For a woman, this figure is about 1.2 gallons. Blood loss can affect the concentration of sodium and other chemicals in the blood. It will impact the pH of blood and the body's ability to control temperature. It will also lower blood pressure simply because less blood is flowing through the circulatory system. This effect will stimulate the kidneys to release an enzyme that will initiate a series of chemical reactions, causing the body to increase sodium levels and water retention.

Sodium Effects

Low sodium levels in the blood, or hyponatremia, can cause a wide range of symptoms, including nausea, headache and loss of consciousness. Severe vomiting or kidney failure might cause unsafe drops in sodium. High levels are equally as harmful. When you consume excess salt, your body retains water to dilute sodium concentrations to normal levels. The result is an increase in blood volume and pressure. The increase in pressure can make an injury involving artery damage more serious due to the increased blood loss because of the high pressure within the blood vessels.

Warfarin

Warfarin sodium is a common drug prescribed to reduce the risk of blood clots in patients at risk of heart attack or stroke. However, proper dosage is critical to avoid excessive bleeding that can occur in any tissue or organ. Women considering pregnancy should not take warfarin sodium because of these health risks. In addition, consult your doctor before any medical procedure in which bleeding might occur. Other dietary supplements can also boost your risk, including garlic, coenzyme Q10 or ginkgo biloba, warns Drugs.com.