healthy & salty. Oxymoron?

[WindwardOahuRN]

Re: healthy & salty. Oxymoron?

Also, remember that processed foods are where the "bad salt" is, if you stick to sea salt you are ok. I use sea salt a lot when I cook and my sodium levels are normal but I stay away from almost all processed foods ~ except soy chips...

There is no difference in the sodium content of sea salt or any other kind of salt. Sodium is sodium, regardless of its point of origin. You cannot "stick to sea salt" and be okay if you are sensitive to sodium.

As far as serum sodium levels go, the body is wonderful at maintaining the proper blood level of sodium. Unless something is terribly wrong (dehydration, malfunction of sodium regulating systems) it is rare to see serum sodium levels that are badly out of whack.

Being "sensitive" to sodium is more common, often manifested by fluid retention. It is an individual reaction---some folks can consume large amounts of salty foods and never be bothered and others are very sensitive, suffering fluid retention, bloat, and perhaps even hypertension. It's not reflected in serum sodium levels at all, so although normal serum sodium levels are a good thing they are not indicative of sodium sensitivity.

Switching from regular table salt to sea salt is not going to make any difference as far as fluid retention or any other adverse reaction to salt consumption.

The salt substitutes are potassium chloride. Some are sodium chloride and potassium blends. Okay if you can stand the metallic taste. Not good for those suffering from kidney failure, btw.

And yep, processed foods are generally loaded with salt. Ham, Spam, luncheon meats, etc. Saimin and ramen are usually loaded with sodium, in the form of sodium chloride and MSG.

[1stwahine]

Re: healthy & salty. Oxymoron?

Wow!!! Congrats!! Layne!! I'm going to show this thread and your pic's to my Honey. You're an inspiration. He's been struggling with his diet and exercise regiment. Well, he just started last week. When I met him..he had a body. He's gained 25lbs. Ok...ok..30lbs.heheheh

He bought the Bun & Thigh Roller last week. No improvement yet.

Mahalo

Auntie Lynn

btw: RN, thanks for telling about Saimin! My Honey has been on a self imposed "Saimin" diet. Now I know why he neda lose weight.hahahah

[craigwatanabe]

Re: healthy & salty. Oxymoron?

Yep I have to agree that salt is salt no matter where you get it from. It's how the body processes it out is what makes the difference.

If you have a craving for salts, then the only way to get it out is to sweat it out. Is swimming a good way? I believe so simply because as the water that surrounds your body is trying to cool you down, your body is trying to keep it's core temperature up by increasing it's metabolism.

Raising your metabolism burns calories. Although you don't feel as if you're sweating, you really are just at a cooler temperature.

Is salt bad for you? God put sodium on this planet for a reason but like anything too much is not a good thing. The body needs iodine for proper glandular function and salt provides that. But the body's necessary intake of salt can be found in most of our rooty vegatables so there is no reason to pour it on to our foods we eat.

Too much sodium in our diet has its negative effects as we all know, but too little causes the body to start shutting down and then the body becomes unbalanced in it's ability to function normally and to ward off disease. So as the chef says, "just a pinch" is all that's needed.

To me the three main elements of healthy living is: 1) breathe deep, 2) drink plenty of water and 3) sweat like a pig.

If you do all of this on a daily basis, your body will start to crave the bad stuff less and the good stuff more. If you want to boost these three steps, drink water high in alkalinity to offset the acidic stuff we throw in our bodies. Our bodies function better at an alkaline level but we tend to consume more acidic stuff. A properly alkaline balanced body produces better enzymic action which allows for better digestion of our foods which means less fat in the body.

When you breathe, take a deep breath to fill every air sac within your lungs (where the most transistion of carbon dioxide and oxygen occur) and hold it for three seconds then exhale slowly. Do this repeatedly (in a clean air environment) and you will feel the rush of clarity almost immediately. Oxygen is key for proper organ function.

And the hardest of the three steps is to sweat like a pig. And that's where exercise is so vital. If you don't like to sweat or exert energy, then go to the pool and walk the width of it. Or since we are blessed with some of the best beaches in the world, go to the beach and walk that. Sweating purges most of the body's toxins to help keep the body from breaking down.

So with a good intake of oxygen to help the organs and a healthy diet to maintain the right intake of iodine (and other vitamins and minerals) to maintain proper glandular function plus a regimented routine to sweat out the toxins in the body, the body can maintain itself and keep you healthy.

But if you take in less oxygen (like smoking), eat too much processed foods and overwhelm our glands and don't sweat it out, you simply die early.

It's funny how we as humans maintain our cars better than our own bodies by bringing in our cars for routine oil changes but can't seem to bring ourselves into the doctor once a year for an annual check up. And the ironic part is our medical insurance covers such medical visits but our car insurance doesn't cover oil changes.

[Hilo Artist]

Re: healthy & salty. Oxymoron?

Greetara

My wife told me I am becoming like my friend Gloria who writes for our newspaper here. I write exactly how I speak, real lolo most of the times! But true to who I am and nothing else.

Auntie Lynn

Please encourage your honey to take things slow and not rush into a strenous diet and exercise program. Success at these things takes time and a lot of planning with a doctor and trained professional.

Even in my case, I went over board and got dehydrated even when I did my gallon of water a day. Sometimes doing too much cardio when the weather is dry can cause problems. Another factor that effected me was the high protein diet! Chicken breast, fish, and egg whites are easy going in but without carbs to go with them are like bricks coming out of the other end.

I would have never posted that fat picture of myself due to egotictical reasons , but thought it out and decided that it would maybe inspire a few people to make the change to a healthier lifestyle. Eating is a major part of enjoying life, but if we indulged everyday what life would there to be lived if we were only shortening the lenght of it.


One step at a time....

[craigwatanabe]

Re: healthy & salty. Oxymoron?

A gallon a day is fine, but don't drink a gallon in one sitting...it'll kill ya.

[Hilo Artist]

Re: healthy & salty. Oxymoron?

I agree that salt is salt.

When I worked at VR for the State some of the girls there used to say sea salt was good and I disagreed that it was all the same.

When you workout a lot and run like I do, sometimes you need to replenish these minerals. The major mineral that I do not deplete is potassium as I believe is what makes the heart beat.

Sodium is everywhere and even in natural vegetables like celery there is trace amount of it . So it is a mineral that we probably do not need a lot of in excess.

[WindwardOahuRN]

Re: healthy & salty. Oxymoron?

Is salt bad for you? God put sodium on this planet for a reason but like anything too much is not a good thing. The body needs iodine for proper glandular function and salt provides that. But the body's necessary intake of salt can be found in most of our rooty vegatables so there is no reason to pour it on to our foods we eat.

>>snip<<

If you want to boost these three steps, drink water high in alkalinity to offset the acidic stuff we throw in our bodies. Our bodies function better at an alkaline level but we tend to consume more acidic stuff. A properly alkaline balanced body produces better enzymic action which allows for better digestion of our foods which means less fat in the body.

Not arguing here but regular table salt does not contain iodine. If you buy salt labelled as "Iodized Salt," iodine has been added to the salt.

The acid/base balance of the body is regulated by several highly intricate mechanisms involving the lungs and the renal system, among other things. It's very difficult to change the actual pH of our bodies simply by consuming either acidic of alkaline substances. In the absence of underlying disease the body is real good at correcting such things. If you are a healthy person you would have to consume massive amounts of acid or alkaline to be able to make a difference. A change in pH can be achieved by giving IV fluids such as sodium bicarbonate (an alkaline or base) or adjusting ventilators so a person blows off CO2 (an acid) or retains it to achieve the desired effect.

A messed up acid/base balance can lead to death. The two types of acid/base imbalances are respiratory and metabolic. An acid/base imbalance is indicative of severe problems (respiratory failure or renal failure being the most likely).

I don't know why consuming alkaline substances would improve digestion, seeing as the main digestive acid is hydrochloric acid. You can change the pH of the stomach environment by neutralizing acids with alkalines, temporarily, but the natural acidic state of the stomach will win out. Unless you use H2 blockers such as tagamet or pepcid, for example, which work at the cellular level to decrease acid production. I want to see where you might be coming from but I can't---can you help with some sources, maybe? (Please, no New Age stuff---I like science.)

[craigwatanabe]

Re: healthy &amp; salty. Oxymoron?

it's all about science. The convergance from alkaline to acidic occurs in the mouth when the salivary glands start the process leading to stomach acids to help break down the food into digestable material. Eating acidic foods actually does nothing in this conversion process so it doesn't help prepare the stomach for proper digestion.

All this info comes from Dr. Terry Shintani not only a doctor of medicine but as a nutritionist as well. He reminds us that when going to Med school, nutrition is only a section of learning where as the science of nutrition takes more than just a block of study, it's an entire field of knowledge that most doctors of general practice don't know enough of.

To me if you can lower the Ph balance of your body by eating unhealthy stuff, you can raise it by eating healthy foods. Your body tries in vain to maintain a proper chemical balance however as we consume bad stuff, the body strains to correct itself. Eventually the attitude wins and the body breaks down as the mechanisms that maintain the body's balance breaks as well.

Same as an automobile, neglect it and put in junk fuel and the engine fails. Like an engine your body needs proper nutrition to maintain itself otherwise, put in crap fuel, get crap results.

[greentara]

Re: healthy &amp; salty. Oxymoron?

There is no difference in the sodium content of sea salt or any other kind of salt. Sodium is sodium, regardless of its point of origin. You cannot "stick to sea salt" and be okay if you are sensitive to sodium.

As far as serum sodium levels go, the body is wonderful at maintaining the proper blood level of sodium. Unless something is terribly wrong (dehydration, malfunction of sodium regulating systems) it is rare to see serum sodium levels that are badly out of whack.

Being "sensitive" to sodium is more common, often manifested by fluid retention. It is an individual reaction---some folks can consume large amounts of salty foods and never be bothered and others are very sensitive, suffering fluid retention, bloat, and perhaps even hypertension. It's not reflected in serum sodium levels at all, so although normal serum sodium levels are a good thing they are not indicative of sodium sensitivity.

Switching from regular table salt to sea salt is not going to make any difference as far as fluid retention or any other adverse reaction to salt consumption.

The salt substitutes are potassium chloride. Some are sodium chloride and potassium blends. Okay if you can stand the metallic taste. Not good for those suffering from kidney failure, btw.

And yep, processed foods are generally loaded with salt. Ham, Spam, luncheon meats, etc. Saimin and ramen are usually loaded with sodium, in the form of sodium chloride and MSG.

Thanks lots of good info. I have always been under the impression that there was a big difference between sea salt and reg. salt. Unlike my husband I don't have an adverse reaction to salt so I never really researched the issue. Always thought that the reason that my sodium levels were good was because I ate sea salt. Don’t all prepared foods contain a huge level of sodium? Frozen foods ~ can foods etc. my Dr. told me that that was the real danger and to avoid prepared foods as much as possible.

[WindwardOahuRN]

Re: healthy &amp; salty. Oxymoron?

it's all about science. The convergance from alkaline to acidic occurs in the mouth when the salivary glands start the process leading to stomach acids to help break down the food into digestable material. Eating acidic foods actually does nothing in this conversion process so it doesn't help prepare the stomach for proper digestion.

All this info comes from Dr. Terry Shintani not only a doctor of medicine but as a nutritionist as well. He reminds us that when going to Med school, nutrition is only a section of learning where as the science of nutrition takes more than just a block of study, it's an entire field of knowledge that most doctors of general practice don't know enough of.

To me if you can lower the Ph balance of your body by eating unhealthy stuff, you can raise it by eating healthy foods. Your body tries in vain to maintain a proper chemical balance however as we consume bad stuff, the body strains to correct itself. Eventually the attitude wins and the body breaks down as the mechanisms that maintain the body's balance breaks as well.

Same as an automobile, neglect it and put in junk fuel and the engine fails. Like an engine your body needs proper nutrition to maintain itself otherwise, put in crap fuel, get crap results.

I like Dr. Shintani. Thanks for not giving me a Moonbeam explanation. I see what you mean, I think, in regards to the digestive process.

But honestly, it is stupendously difficult to actually lower your body pH by eating crap. You can mess up your blood chemistry and counts (electrolytes, hemoglobin, etc) but I am talking about actual blood pH---obtained via arterial blood gas. The acid/base balance of the blood, not digestion. I guess I got a bit off track here.

You can have patients who are terribly emaciated, cachectic, malnourished to the max, and they still manage to have pretty damn good ABG's if their organs (mainly kidneys and lungs) are still functioning even halfway well.

They may not last for long due to other reasons but, IME, they often manage to maintain their acid/base balance until the very end.

Amazing machines, these bodies of ours.

And I definitely agree----proper nutrition makes the job of maintaining health a lot easier. Your body does not have to work as hard to correct our mistakes.

[Hilo Artist]

Re: healthy &amp; salty. Oxymoron?

it's all about science. The convergance from alkaline to acidic occurs in the mouth when the salivary glands start the process leading to stomach acids to help break down the food into digestable material. Eating acidic foods actually does nothing in this conversion process so it doesn't help prepare the stomach for proper digestion.

All this info comes from Dr. Terry Shintani not only a doctor of medicine but as a nutritionist as well. He reminds us that when going to Med school, nutrition is only a section of learning where as the science of nutrition takes more than just a block of study, it's an entire field of knowledge that most doctors of general practice don't know enough of.

To me if you can lower the Ph balance of your body by eating unhealthy stuff, you can raise it by eating healthy foods. Your body tries in vain to maintain a proper chemical balance however as we consume bad stuff, the body strains to correct itself. Eventually the attitude wins and the body breaks down as the mechanisms that maintain the body's balance breaks as well.

Same as an automobile, neglect it and put in junk fuel and the engine fails. Like an engine your body needs proper nutrition to maintain itself otherwise, put in crap fuel, get crap results.

Hey you know my friend Dr, Terry Shintani!
Heres a picture of myself and Dr. Shintani when he flew to Hilo to attend the opening of the NOAA museum I made...

When it comes to doing these stuff , I guess you could say I am not an arm chair quarterback,but do it in real life and everyday!

[Jake's Ohana]

Re: healthy &amp; salty. Oxymoron?

Aloha, Kungpao,

Somehow it seems fitting to write to you. I too, have a craving for salty foods. My wife on the other hand, loves sweets, chocolate to be exact "chocoholic."

When I eat something sweet, usually for dessert, I may need to follow with something not sweet to cancel out the sweet taste in my mouth . And when it comes to ohana gatherings and most dinner meals, I usually just "pig out" on the main course and never save room for dessert or sweets afterward. I tend to make that excuse as "I already ate my dessert during my meal."

Whatever the case is, I have found my similarities with you. Unfortunately, nearly 10 years ago, I found my triglycerides highly elevated, and my total cholesterol out of control. My doctor mentioned that I am a walking time bomb. And to boot, my family history contains cardiovascular disease and cancer .

So my choices during this time of shock was to diet, exercise, and possibly drug therapy. Of course, diet in the beginning worked out great! I instantly dropped 10 lbs. However, my lack of discipline did me in, and I quickly fell off the diet/exercise regiment. So of course, drug therapy was my next option. My physician started me out slow with some generic gemfibrozil, and then over the years to new drugs (cutting edge statins) that were more potent to hypertriglycerides, i.e. zetia, crestor, and now Tricor. I was amazed at my progress on my triglycerides, hdl's, ldl's, glucose, and total cholesterol. My best total cholesterol count clocked me at 177 (prior to, my number was 280).

Today, as I just celebrated the big 40 last month, I am finding my body wearing down. Lately, my knee joints have been sore, and body just not feeling right. I guess you can say that my age is getting the best of me as my neglect for better health has taken a toll. It's funny, I have always been told that my looks are much younger than my age, however, my body doesn't seem to think so.

So, today, I think I have received my "wake up call, coming to Jesus," or whatever you want to label it. I plan to stop taking my cholesterol meds and try a more wholistic approach along with diet modification and exercise. Last months lab results showed very good numbers, so I think I am leaving my baseline results in good hands. Similar to what Hilo Artist, Layne, mentioned about the diet regiment from the book "Body for Life" is what I plan to incorporate in my diet plan. I purchased this book several years ago, followed its principles "somewhat" loosely, however, discontinued out of lack of interest.

We'll see where this take me...however, my words are not meant for you to consider discontinuing your drug therapy but to consider diet/life style modications. Now I will be watching the foods that I consume more closely and taking a more active role in exercise. Like you, my blood pressure is awesome. My BP during my 3 month lab follow ups are always normal. So I still plan to eat my salty stuff, but within reason. Best wishes to good health for all.

Aloha,

Jake

[Hilo Artist]

Re: healthy &amp; salty. Oxymoron?

Aloha, Kungpao,

Somehow it seems fitting to write to you. I too, have a craving for salty foods. My wife on the other hand, loves sweets, chocolate to be exact "chocoholic."

When I eat something sweet, usually for dessert, I may need to follow with something not sweet to cancel out the sweet taste in my mouth . And when it comes to ohana gatherings and most dinner meals, I usually just "pig out" on the main course and never save room for dessert or sweets afterward. I tend to make that excuse as "I already ate my dessert during my meal."

Whatever the case is, I have found my similarities with you. Unfortunately, nearly 10 years ago, I found my triglycerides highly elevated, and my total cholesterol out of control. My doctor mentioned that I am a walking time bomb. And to boot, my family history contains cardiovascular disease and cancer .

So my choices during this time of shock was to diet, exercise, and possibly drug therapy. Of course, diet in the beginning worked out great! I instantly dropped 10 lbs. However, my lack of discipline did me in, and I quickly fell off the diet/exercise regiment. So of course, drug therapy was my next option. My physician started me out slow with some generic gemfibrozil, and then over the years to new drugs (cutting edge statins) that were more potent to hypertriglycerides, i.e. zetia, crestor, and now Tricor. I was amazed at my progress on my triglycerides, hdl's, ldl's, glucose, and total cholesterol. My best total cholesterol count clocked me at 177 (prior to, my number was 280).

Today, as I just celebrated the big 40 last month, I am finding my body wearing down. Lately, my knee joints have been sore, and body just not feeling right. I guess you can say that my age is getting the best of me as my neglect for better health has taken a toll. It's funny, I have always been told that my looks are much younger than my age, however, my body doesn't seem to think so.

So, today, I think I have received my "wake up call, coming to Jesus," or whatever you want to label it. I plan to stop taking my cholesterol meds and try a more wholistic approach along with diet modification and exercise. Last months lab results showed very good numbers, so I think I am leaving my baseline results in good hands. Similar to what Hilo Artist, Layne, mentioned about the diet regiment from the book "Body for Life" is what I plan to incorporate in my diet plan. I purchased this book several years ago, followed its principles "somewhat" loosely, however, discontinued out of lack of interest.

We'll see where this take me...however, my words are not meant for you to consider discontinuing your drug therapy but to consider diet/life style modications. Now I will be watching the foods that I consume more closely and taking a more active role in exercise. Like you, my blood pressure is awesome. My BP during my 3 month lab follow ups are always normal. So I still plan to eat my salty stuff, but within reason. Best wishes to good health for all.

Aloha,

Jake

Jake

You will do well! Trust in yourself ! You are still young! That number is just that, a number.

I have a friend and mentor who is 50 and out surfs, is stronger , and more conditioned than most 20 year olds. I featured him in my blog and he helped me with my diet and exercise routines for almost 20 years!

I am here as a testament that it can be done no matter how bad health or out of shape anyone is!

I read Body for Life about a year ago and noticed that a lot of it really works! What I also liked about it was that it is not really a starvation type of diet but more of a balanced diet including carbs and proteins and essential fats!

On another topic and type of change in lifestyle, My other friend went from 230 in 1986 and now maintains 155 ! He doesnt diet but eats regular food only portioned smaller. He told me that when he goes out to eat at restaurants he only eats half. He explained to me that restaurants are actually giving two servings. That same guy has never yoyoed since!

What I like to do if I am out on the town is find one of those natural food places like Down to Earth or here in Hilo Island Naturals. They have Buffet tables with some pretty good stuff. Beware of the cheese stuff though! But the Tofu dishes are pretty good and very low fat and the salad bar is cool. Beware of those high fat dressings and I opt for the lemon and vinegar.

If you cant find those places a chicken breast salad from Subway is good! Tell them to omit the cheese and use only oliveoil and vinegar.

When I am in Honolulu, I always go to I love Country Kitchen and have their BodyBuilder special. Never gained any weight on these foods!

I wish you good health and also much luck in a new direction towards a better body for life!

Aloha
Layne

[craigwatanabe]

Re: healthy &amp; salty. Oxymoron?

Hey you know my friend Dr, Terry Shintani!
Heres a picture of myself and Dr. Shintani when he flew to Hilo to attend the opening of the NOAA museum I made...

When it comes to doing these stuff , I guess you could say I am not an arm chair quarterback,but do it in real life and everyday!

Dr. Shintani and I go way back to the mid 80's when I used to produce the show Nutrition and You on KGU. He took over after Dr. John Westerdall left. Dr. Westerdall took over hosting the show after Dr. John McDougall left for Hollywood.

[Hilo Artist]

Re: healthy &amp; salty. Oxymoron?

Dr. Shintani and I go way back to the mid 80's when I used to produce the show Nutrition and You on KGU. He took over after Dr. John Westerdall left. Dr. Westerdall took over hosting the show after Dr. John McDougall left for Hollywood.

Oh wowee! Good for you