Tip 241. In
Praise of Salt
You are surely worth y
o
ur salt. Salt is the essen
t
ial source
of
the mineral sodium. Sodium chloride, the chemical
n
ame for common salt, c
o
ntains 39 p
e
r cent of so
d
ium, an element
which never occurs in f
r
ee form in nature. It is f
o
und in an associated fo
r
m with ma
n
y minerals especially in plentiful a
m
ounts with chlorine.
The body of a healthy person weighing about 65
kg contai
n
s 256g of sodium chloride. Of this the major part, just over half, is in t
h
e extra-cellular fluid. Ab
o
ut 96g is in
bone and l
e
ss than
32g in the cells.
Sodium is the most abundant: chemical in the e
x
tra-cellular
fl
uid of the b
o
dy. It acts with other electrolytes,
especially potassium, in the intracellular fluid, to
regulate the
osmotic pressure
and maintain a proper water balance within the
b
ody. It is a
major factor in maintaining acid-
base equili
b
rium, in transmitting nerve impulses, and in relaxing muscles.
It is also r
e
quired for glucose a
b
sorption and
f
or the transport of other nutrients across cell membranes. Sodium can help prevent catarrh. It
p
romotes a clear brain, r
e
sulting in a
better disp
o
s
ition and
l
e
ss mental fatigue. Because of its
influence on
calcium, so
d
ium can also help dissolve any sto
n
es forming within the
b
ody. It is also essenti
a
l
f
or the production of hydrochloric
a
c
id in the stomach and plays a part in many ot
h
er glandular
secretions.
There is s
o
me natural salt in every food we eat. Vegetable foods rich in
sodium are celery, cucumbers,
watermelon,
lemons, oranges, grape
f
ruit, beet-t
o
ps, cabbag
e
, lettuce, corn, lady's fingers, apple, berries,
p
ears, squash, pumpkin, peaches, l
e
ntils, almo
n
ds and wal
n
uts. Animal food sourc
e
s include
s
h
ell fish,
lean
beef, kidney, bacon and
cheese. The
sodium chloride requirements for perso
n
s
living in t
h
e tropics h
a
ve been estimated at 10g to 15g per
day for adults who
are engaged in light w
o
rk and 15g
t
o 20g for t
h
ose engag
e
d in hard work. The requirements of children are from five to 10g and those for a
d
olescent b
o
ys and girls
from 10g
to 25g.
Both defici
e
ncy and excess of s
a
lt
may produ
c
e adverse effects o the
h
uman body. Deficienci
e
s of sodium are, however,
rare and may be caused by excessive sweating, prolonged
u
s
e of diuretics, or chro
ni
c diarrhoea.
Deficiency may lead to
nausea, muscular
weakness,
h
eat exhaustion, mental apathy and respi
r
atory failure. Over-s
u
pply of sodium is a more common problem because of
overuse of dietary sodi
u
m chloride or common
s
alt. Too much sodi
u
m m
a
y lead to water retention, high
b
lood pressu
r
e, stomach ulcers, stomach cancer, har
d
ening of art
e
ries and he
a
rt disease.
In case of mild deficiency of sodium chloride, t
a
king a teasp
o
on of common salt in o
n
e half litre
of water or any fruit juice quickly res
t
ores the he
a
lth. In severe conditio
n
s, however, administration of sodi
u
m chloride in the form of normal saline by intravenous drip
may be restored to.
The adverse effects of
ex
cessive use of sodium chloride can be rectified
by avoiding the use of common salt.
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