Why does everyone insist that salt causes high blood pressure?

Bco4th6th, You write your question with many unsubstantiated “facts.” Firstly, blood pressure is the force of blood pushing against blood vessel walls. The heart pumps blood into the arteries (blood vessels) which carry the blood throughout the body. High blood pressure, also called hypertension, means the pressure in your arteries is above the normal range. In most cases, no one knows what causes high blood pressure. Your statement that “Salt does not cause high blood pressure” and “Taking the water from blood the causes the salt to become concentrated, which thickens the blood, requiring the heart to have to work harder, resulting in high blood pressure” is flawed. You continue by stating that “salt is in the middle of the equation. It isn't what initiates the problem. The initial cause of the problem is not drinking enough water. But since the medical profession refuses to recognize dehydration at this level as being the cause of health problems, their diagnosis stops at a point where they can prescribe medication - because there's no profit in prescribing water.” This is also partly a flawed supposition. Certainly finance is a huge interest in the promotion of drugs both for the drug companies and governments, but not drinking sufficient water is not really a factor of blame. Allow me to briefly discuss the details of salt. Salt is mostly sodium, a mineral that occurs naturally in foods. Sodium is the substance that may cause your blood pressure to increase. Other forms of sodium are also present in food. MSG (monosodium glutamate) is another example of a sodium added to food (common in Chinese food). When you eat too much salt, which contains sodium, your body holds extra water to “wash” the salt from your body. In some people, this may cause blood pressure to rise. The added water puts stress on your heart and blood vessels. The American Heart Association recommends limiting daily sodium intake to no more than 2,300 milligrams. (A teaspoon of salt has about 2,400 milligrams of sodium.) Most people greatly exceed these sodium guidelines. To reduce your sodium intake - don’t use table salt. Read nutrition labels and choose foods lower in sodium. Choose foods marked "sodium-free," "low sodium," and "unsalted." Use salt substitutes. Don’t use ‘lite’ salt as a substitute. Read content labels (Contents are listed in order of the greatest amount). In conclusion, I would recommend a modicum of research before you start outlining cause and result in a public forum. ALL ANSWERS SHOULD BE THOROUGHLY RESEARCHED, IN ANY FORUM AND ESPECIALLY IN THIS ONE. - MANY ANSWERS ARE FLAWED. It is extremely important to obtain an accurate diagnosis before trying to find a cure. Many diseases and conditions share common symptoms. The information provided here should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. A licensed physician should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions. Hope this helps matador 89

Eveything in moderation. Salt increases blood volume, which in turn increases bloodpressure.

Is this really a question or a rant?

Well, this is a rather complicated essay for this venue, and I'm not sure what sort of answer you may be seeking. But high blood pressure runs in my family, and as a result, as part of my regular routine I take my blood pressure daily. And in my experience, it does track towards the higher side if I have been eating lots of salty foods for a couple days...not a tremendous amount, but 5 or so higher on both the systolic and diastolic sides. I'm not qualified to make any grand statements about it though; it's just an observation.

Your understanding of physiology is, well, lets just say you have no idea. I don't know any Dr who recomends driking coffess and energy drinks. And the diuretic effect does not remove 50 % more water than is provided. Come back when you have learned some physiology.

Yes, the concept of HBP being related to dietary salts is incredibly simplistic - it's as though some doctors learned about osmosis and ran with it. It doesn't give the body credit for being able to manage its sodium and other salt levels, which we know it can do with an adequate fluid intake. I do recall hearing about some research that seemed to indicate that there were some people who were "salt responders", that is, their BP did go up and down based on the amount of dietary sodium, and others who did not respond with increased BP. However, if the study didn't control for fluid intake, then maybe they missed an important variable.

your right, i have cut salt out of my diet completely. now i can't stand salt. it actually makes my mouth feel like its been burned if u even have a small amount. sea salt is the best and garlic help with high blood pressure. a fish tank full of fish swimming round also helps with the blood pressure. its weird i now but i hear a lot of peeps say it works.