They call blood pressure the silent killer, because even though you’re unhealthy on the inside, you appear no different on the out.
Salt is in a lot of our favourite meals – but it’s also known to raise your blood pressure, which is why too much of it can cause these sorts of problems; silently.
The reason for this is that your body is made to feel like it must hold more water, when you consume a lot of salt, which raises your blood pressure. The higher your blood pressure, the greater the strain on your heart, arteries, kidneys and brain. This is how people with HBP can eventually suffer from heart attacks, strokes, dementia and kidney disease.
On top of this, most of the salt people eat is hidden in processed foods and some meals are packed with salt without you even knowing.
You may have noticed I mentioned kidneys earlier, when discussing what excess salt intake damages. Well, that actually has nothing to do with your blood pressure. Salt doesn’t just raise your blood pressure and cause problems, it stops your kidneys filtering out waste properly, even if your blood pressure hasn’t been effected by sodium intake, studies have shown. If this is left unchecked, you could become very ill, get kidney disease, or even suffer from kidney failure in some cases.
On top of all this, it effects the engine of our bodies, the brain, the thing that keeps everything ticking over. An over consumption of salt can lead to the release of excess stress hormones, which in itself, raises blood pressure. Studies have proven this, where patients with average salt intake who were very stressed displayed very high blood pressure readings, and it was down to the stress hormones.
This isn’t to say salt isn’t needed though. It plays vital roles in the body, and salt in our diet is how we pretty much get all of our sodium, which our body needs. It’s important to take in responsible amounts of salt, and watch what you’re eating, as salt is hidden in foods at levels you wouldn’t expect…
Bonus blood pressure tip.
A bonus tip on decreasing your blood pressure healthily: Eat 2 bananas a day. Eating 2 bananas a day can reduce your BP by up to 10% studies have shown, due to the blood pressure lowering potassium electrolytes in them.
