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May is High Blood Pressure Awareness Month

Posted on May 3, 2016 - Posted in: Blog

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Sodium (salt) and Your Health

Sodium is an essential mineral for health. Did you know that the average American is eating almost twice (if not more) the amount that our body needs. Too much sodium can lead to come serious health issues, including high blood pressure. 

Sodium is regulated in the body by our kidneys and it helps to control our body's fluid balance.

How does sodium affect our heart?

I thought you would never ask.  See, whenever we have extra sodium building up in our blood stream, it pulls water into our blood vessels, which in return increases the amount (volume) of blood inside our vessels. With more blood flowing into our blood vessels, our blood pressure rises. For example, it's like turning up the water supply to a hose. The pressure in the hose increases as more water flows through it.  Over time the high blood pressure can over stretch or even cause injury to the walls of the blood vessels. Ever heard of the saying, “pressure burst pipes…” There you go. It also speeds up the build-up of plaque that will eventually block blood flow. That additional pressure will cause the heart to have to work harder to pump blood through the body. 

Did you Know that High Blood Pressure is Also Known as: The Silent Killer…… It is known as the "silent killer" because its symptoms are not are always obvious.

  • It is the #1 killer worldwide, and one of the major risk factors for heart disease.
  • It is the leading risk factor for death of women in the United States and the 2nd leading risk factor for death in men. ( pretty scary,right?)
  • One-third of adults (American) have high blood pressure. 90% of adults (American) are predicted to develop high blood pressure over their lifetime. 
  • More than 40% of non-Hispanic black adults have high blood pressure.  High Blood Pressure is more prevalent in blacks than whites and they also develop it earlier in life.  

Here's a tip. 

Even if you do not suffer from High Blood Pressure, reducing your sodium intake can help stump the rise in blood pressure that occurs as we age. It will even reduce our risk of heart attack, heart failure, stroke, kidney disease, osteoporosis, stomach cancer, and headaches.  The extra water that is retained in our body can also lead to bloating and weight gain. 

I know you are thirsty for more, but you will just have to wait. I promise not to make you wait too long.   But while you are waiting for my next email, reduce that sodium intake. 

Written by Dr. Shamva Wright-Shingler, Assistant Professor, Allied Health Department at The College of Westchester.

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