Excess salt intake has more far reaching implications on health than just high blood pressure and water retention. To recognise conditions where salt is implicated To be aware of ways to reduce salt in the diet To recognise foods and products that have a high salt content Humans have always craved salt. But while it was once traded weight for weight with gold, it is now cheap, plentiful, and criticised as a dietary villain. Too much sodium has been primarily linked with increased risk of heart attack, but also with strokes, asthma, stomach cancer and osteoporosis. Too much sodium may be undesirable, but we can't live without this essential element, either.
Sodium is also vital for the function of nerves.
During the resting state, sodium ions are prevented from entering the nerve cell by means of the sodium pump. When a nerve impulse occurs, sodium ions pass briefly from the outside to the inside of the nerve cell, while potassium ions travel in the opposite direction. This movement temporarily changes the voltage of the cell from negative to positive and the change in electrical state allows the impulse to pass from cell to cell along the length of the nerve. Up to 80 per cent of our sodium intake comes from processed foods, whereas salt added at the table accounts for 20 per cent or less of the total. Only about 10 per cent is present naturally in fresh food.