Study: More Exercise Cuts Sodium Levels

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Study: More Exercise Cuts Sodium Levels

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/220147.php

Overall, persons should regularly exercise and consume less sodium in their

diets. This week though, research has been shared with the public and the

American Heart Association Meeting in Atlanta, Georgia, that a person's blood

pressure lessens the more exercise you do, in direct response to a high salt

diet.

The American Heart Association recommends consuming less than 1,500 mg of sodium

per day.

If a person's average systolic blood pressure (the top number in the reading,

measured when the heart is contracting) increased 5% or more from the low-sodium

to the high-sodium regimen, the researchers labeled them as high salt-sensitive.

Casey M. Rebholz, M.P.H., lead author of the study and a medical student at the

Tulane School of Medicine and doctoral student at the Tulane University School

of Public Health & Tropical Medicine in New Orleans states:

" Patients should be advised to increase their physical activity and eat less

sodium. Restricting sodium is particularly important in lowering blood pressure

among more sedentary people. In all the analyses we found a dose response

relationship with the more activity, the better. "

Investigators compared study participants' blood pressure on two one-week diets,

one low in sodium (3,000 mg/day) and the other high in sodium (18,000 mg/day).

The participants were 1,906 Han Chinese adults (average age 38) in the Genetic

Epidemiology Network of Salt Sensitivity (GenSalt), a large project to identify

genetic and environmental factors contributing to salt sensitivity. The GenSalt

project is located in rural China because the homogeneous population makes it

more likely that genes influential to blood pressure control will be identified.

Rebholz continues:

" The study needs to be repeated, but I suspect that the relationship between

physical activity and salt-sensitivity will apply to other populations. "

Your body needs some sodium to function properly because it helps maintain the

right balance of fluids in your body, transmits nerve impulses and influences

the contraction and relaxation of muscles.

Kidneys naturally balance the amount of sodium stored in your body for optimal

health. When sodium levels are low, kidneys essentially hold on to the sodium.

When sodium levels are high, kidneys excrete the excess in urine.

But if for some reason kidneys can't eliminate enough sodium, the sodium starts

to accumulate in the bloodstream. Because sodium attracts and holds water, blood

volume increases. Increased blood volume makes the heart work harder to move

more blood through blood vessels, which increases pressure in arteries. Such

diseases as congestive heart failure, cirrhosis and chronic kidney disease can

make it hard for kidneys to keep sodium levels balanced.

The vast majority of dietary sodium comes from eating foods that are processed

and prepared. These foods are typically high in salt, which is a combination of

sodium and chloride, and in additives that contain sodium. While these

ingredients have many practical uses, such as preservation and enhanced taste,

they can greatly increase your sodium intake.

Like your sushi? Many recipes call for salt, and many people also salt their

food at the table. Many other condiments also contain sodium. One tablespoon (15

milliliters) of soy sauce, for example, has about 1,000 mg of sodium.

Sources: The American Heart Association Meeting Report and The Mayo Clinic