Is potassium more important than sodium?

Advice for everyone to eat low salt diets is misguided and unhelpful for the majority of people. A new study helps highlight the futility of this advice and shows that getting enough potassium is likely more important than focusing on sodium and salt intake. Here are the take home messages for you.

About us:

[JYAN]

Most potassium and magnesium are in the cells. Serum tests for these are almost always normal. Hypertension is usually due to potassium and/or magnesium deficiencies. Not to mention when people eat globs of carbs, potassium gets sucked out of cells to create glycogen. Potassium is needed to link long chains of glucose. Do not lower salt/sodium. Increase potassium and magnesium instead

[cfoster]

He is so right. I stopped bp pills and told my cardiologist I want to make lifestyle changes instead. I changed my bad habits and got results but noticed that when I took my potassium prescription my BP and heart rate looked great. I'm now focused on getting it through diet and supplement. I see results quickly!

[JimWooddell]

Finally! Someone talking about this!!!! I was salt sensitive. My blood pressure easily spiked. Blood tests showed normal potassium levels. However, I knew electrolytes are very tightly regulated in the body and blood testing was missing the issue. I increased my potassium intake and I am no longer salt sensitive and my BP is down and stable. In the natural world of a carnivore, potassium to sodium ratio is not equal and can be as high as a 4 to 1 ratio....4 parts potassium to 1 part salt. This is fact, not opinion. Look at any meat and you will see at least a 2 to 1 ratio.
So... Why do electrolyte supplements have it backwards???? The way our body works is we need more potassium than salt. This is also a scientific fact in the way potassium and salt work together in the body. There are only a few electrolyte manufacturers that have a proper human intake ratio. And those pushing the sale of electrolytes to the carnivore communities will not talk about it. I firmly believe based on my own experience if potassium store are low in the body, even though blood tests say it is okay, is when people begin to have pressure issues. It goes very deep into the science on how the body uses, regulates potassium and where it gets it from. There are many Youtube pages that clearly explain the potassium and salt relationship. Do we loose more salt than potassium? Did nature get it wrong? No one listens.

[zerocarbdoc]

Love when Bret commits and tells it straight.

[oldschoolprepper]

If you’re a carb burner you hold on to salt and
if you are a fat burner you shed salt and need more

[taginn]

I avoid salt with anti-caking agents, such as yellow prussiate of soda, as those agents seem to cause edema for me, whereas pure salt does not. So if 'salt' causes edema for, maybe it's not the salt per se.

[thomashughes]

I take a pinch of salt every morning, and I eat salt to taste. My BP is ~100/60. 💪😎👍💯♥️ I'm 55.

[BonjourCoco]

I’ve started combining Redmonds salt with Losalt (which is high in potassium chloride) to ensure I get adequate potassium

[zamfirtoth]

Not only are we warned to stay away from salt, but we are told to consume 8 or so glasses of water daily. I wonder how many of the folks that carry around a water bottle like it's an appendage end up with late day fatigue. I love RealSalt.

[richardmiddleton]

Also depends how much you workout and therefore sweat and also your sweat rate.

[siriusfun]

Redmond Real Salt - as much as I feel like - puts me right.

[ronbarber]

Most people get from a box doctor don't have time to explain this so they make a blanket statement (no salt) it is 300 bucks for 15 min so they just don't have the time

[cardmonty]

I get AFIB if I eat processed food that has high sodium, ie Canned Soup & Frozen Pizza. Real bad stuff. I found an organic Soybean Pasta that Aldi sells that supplies 1100mg of Potassium per serving. And it’s great tasting.

[Jack-hyzq]

I put a pinch of Himalayan salt in my tea 6-8 times per day. I also sprinkle my one meal a day with salt. My BP is 110/70!

[andrewplus]

Great info as always, appreciate this. Wondering what the best strategy for raising magnesium would be? What sources are most bio available? Seems like a lot of plant sources aren’t that bio available.

[ponglife]

Salt makes food tasty, and my blood pressure is great even with all the salt I take. Romans cometimes used salt as currency, which means they knew how important salt is.

[finagill]

I know that since starting keto I need to take at least 7, 000 mg of sodium a day. I take plenty of potassium as well.

[iang]

Informative and cited videos are my jam ❤

[karunamayiholisticinc]

I have been found low on sodium and potassium before. I know people who needed sodium injected because of being too low. But salt should be avoided in outside processed foods. I usually add enough salt in my food. But I have seen when others cook your food there is either days of literally no salt no taste and need to add more or other days when there is too much that it is poison to taste buds as well. When someone doesn't have to eat your food and cooking for others they will not know right quantity. There are many days i added extra Himalayan salt to my food when I start living with my mom because she doesn't have concept of how much to add. Even in her home made snacks I have to be strict with her so she doesn't ruin it.
She is very careful not to overdo on those. But salt should be according to taste. The fact that people cooking for others will either add too much or too less, it is ideal to add a little less and let people add on top as they require.
Because when you eat your rice and all you taste is salt it is nothing but poison to our taste buds also. You have to hate someone to give them such food. Not saying my mother hates me but definitely people are ignorant and don't want to listen. I am not against salt considering my blood pressure is usually very low mostly and I have been detected low on sodium before but I will not opt for refined salt any day except washing my mouth. I will eat Himalayan salt as much as I like and my tastebuds can handle.
The problem with salt is when it I refined and added to processed foods. One eating whole foods of any kind can add salt upto their taste. I can't handle no salt food either. Many times I have added on top.
Which is why I feel salt should be people's preference. Everyone's body tells them how much to eat and when to stop.
The problem with MOST processed foods is that it is addictive and even if body tells us to stop mind does not want to.
Whether it is processed bread from store or processed noodles.
I do eat very small quantity of home made millet bread at times but I can never get addicted to it as i did when I used used eat market bread. It is not just not the same taste or even texture.
Everything added in store makes a huge difference.
Anyways salt is individual preference. I have to yell at my mom for both NO salt and too much salt because both are poison to me because my body needs certain things and it knows it which is why I think it is good to add little while cooking and let people add on to as to their taste.
It is not salt it is how it is present in processed foods the problem.
Our body is our best guide. When I ever eat a processed biscuit once in a while at all I end up throwing it too which is something people will not notice because our eyes tend to see what it wants to.
Our body tells us that we need some salt, good fats whether from plants or animals but only whole food sources and not processed food sources whether plants or animals.
If we listen we know what we need.

[fsabbagh]

Would love to hear about your thoughts on Pro-Metabolic “diet”