The salt shaker is the savior of soggy veggies 🥕 and bland rice… but it may be one of the most underestimated risks on your table.

A study modeling salt consumption, published in the European Heart Journal, found that using a salt shaker to season prepared meals can shave 1.5 years and 2.28 years off women's and men's life expectancy, respectively.

“There’s basically a sodium epidemic in this country,” explains cardiologist Rigved V. Tadwalkar in an article in Prevention. “[And] very few people are immune to the effects.”

The logical solution is to put the shaker down. We can end here, right? Unfortunately, most of us are still eating too much salt, which is hijacking our brains 🧠 and health…but it’s probably not your fault.

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That same European Heart Journal study, which tracked more than 500,000 people, found that always salting food increased risk of premature death by 28%, linked to high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes, and the two major causes of death globally: heart disease 🫀 and stroke. 

A meta-analysis of studies in the British Medical Journal found that higher salt intake increased stroke risk by 23% and cardiovascular disease risk by 17% compared to those who eat less salt.

Aging can worsen salt’s effects. 👴

As we get older, it becomes harder for the kidneys to flush excess sodium, so the amount of salt a 30-year-old body can handle is more dangerous at 60.

The American Heart Association recommends consuming no more than 2,300 mg of sodium daily — about one teaspoon of salt 🥄 (Props if you are hitting 1,500 mg, the optimal target for cardiovascular health).

Nonetheless, over 90% of Americans exceed this, often because of:

🧠 Brain chemistry: Salt triggers dopamine release in your brain's reward system. Like sugar and social media, it can become habit-forming. Over time, many find they need more sodium to get the same pleasurable response.

📺 Marketing: Even ‘healthy’ electrolyte beverages marketed to rebalance minerals can have upwards of 1,000 mg of sodium per serving. Most of us don't exercise enough to warrant that.

🫙 Environment: Culture can shape cravings. Many cuisines rely on salty condiments–whether it’s soy sauce and miso or pickles, hot sauce, and ketchup — which drive sodium intake. 

Food companies and products labeled as healthy still use copious amounts of salt that may unintentionally be sabotaging health.

Depending on the brand, this is one teaspoon of sodium:

This literally EXCLUDES any salt ever added during the cooking of vegetables, meats, grains, and everything in between! 🍳

Reduced-sodium and no-sodium brands exist, but they’re often not as tasty, popular, or widely available.

Nevertheless, if food manufacturers were to just generally reduce salt 🥓, it could prevent about 100,000 cases of heart disease and 25,000 stroke cases in the UK over 20 years, a Hypertension study shows. Daily sodium intake would drop to around 1900 mg with no behavior change required.

Fancy salts like Celtic sea salt and Pink Himalayan salt do contain 100+ trace minerals, but they are still up to 98% sodium chloride. The same applies to gut-healthy salty ferments, like miso and kimchi. 

Most Americans can probably cut back on sodium intake, but the risk is higher for…

Despite the many forces at play, you can make the food you cook taste great with less salt. 

Salt substitutes: Potassium chloride (KCl) is the cousin of salt that gives food a savory flavor with less compromise to health. However, it can be risky with certain medications or chronic kidney disease—talk to your doctor.

Potassium-rich food: If you do eat a lot of salt, increasing your consumption of potassium-rich foods (avocado, banana, white beans, spinach, lentils, and potatoes) may reverse some of the mortality impact, according to Prevention. 🍌 🥔

Use Acid: Lemon juice, vinegars, and cultured dairy products boost flavor and brightness without the need for excess salt. Adding olive oil further boosts the absorption of vitamins.

Herbs and spices: Seasoning with fresh or dried herbs 🌿 , garlic, ginger, citrus zest, and spices can reduce reliance on salt.

Add salt at the end: Salting food at the end of cooking reduces overall salt content in the meal while still allowing a salty flavor to be the first thing you taste.

Salt is essential in moderation, but excess is a risk for high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, and stroke…nearly 90% of us may be unintentionally in this category.

The biggest fix might be the food industry. 🍔 Until then, you can shift the odds with potassium-rich whole foods, flavor swaps, reading the food labels, and enjoying high-sodium meals when they count.

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