The Best Salt According to Science (NOT what you think!)

The healthiest salt you've probably never heard of! Science-backed, easy and effective, this hack can deliver results overnight with no effort or big change to your diet.

excess of sodium (salt) among top 3 causes of death and disease

why is sodium problematic?

The more sodium, the more water our kidneys retain. This increases blood pressure, i.e. more stress on the heart, raising risk of CVD

moderating sodium is associated with less CVD

high sodium may raise risk of kidney disease, osteoroposis and stomach cancer

so just go easy on the salt?
eating salty food builds the habit, and reducing salt intensifies the taste of salt and we start preferring less salty foods

is there something that makes food salty but doesn’t raise blood pressure?

Turns out we have something even better. Potassium chloride. Its salty and lowers blood pressure. Potassium helps the body excrete sodium and it can also relax blood vessels directly

recent trial replaced people´s salt to be lower in sodium and higher in potassium. the salt lower in sodium reduced strokes and mortality and the salt only reduced sodium 25%

If salt had even less sodium, effect could be even stronger.

only swapping salt (still salty) reduced total death. in the US, people eating the most sodium have higher risk of dying; higher potassium associated with lower mortality.

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Disclaimer: The contents of this video are for informational purposes only and are not intended to be medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment, nor to replace medical care. The information presented herein is accurate and conforms to the available scientific evidence to the best of the author's knowledge as of the time of posting. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions regarding any medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking it because of information contained in Nutrition Made Simple!.

#NutritionMadeSimple #GilCarvalho

0:00 #1 diet hack
0:55 Excess sodium, a risk factor
2:42 Benefits of Potassium Chloride
5:14 Trying potassium salt for myself
5:51 Where to find it
7:02 How does it taste?
7:39 Can we go too far?
8:35 Where most sodium comes from

[NutritionMadeSimple]

Please NOTE: If you have kidney issues or take medication that can affect your potassium levels (e.g. beta-blockers), potassium salt may not be right for you, please talk to your doctor before introducing it.

[davidcover]

As a Renal RD, I'd recommend adding a disclaimer that this would NOT be appropriate for anyone with late stage kidney disease (mainly ESRD). Aside from that, great info, I've always recommended this for otherwise healthy pts.

[brooksrogers]

Mama’s boy here, too. Starting caring for her 20 years ago. She turned 102 a couple of months ago. She had had a heart attack when I started caring for her. Offered her choices from my now 47 year vegan diet. After a year she no longer desired any meat and a few years later stopped all fish after reducing over time. “I just don’t like them anymore.”

So take note, you are now in it for the long run.

Looking forward to more sodium analysis. Mom does run slightly low in her bloodwork. I give her coconut water to help with that.

[lalonkarim]

I am 39 and I had hypertension for the last 5 or 6 years. In the last three weeks I decreased my salt intake by almost half and since then my BP is completely normal and I am off my medication.

[gregmeissner]

Potassium chloride is what I use to ferment my own kimchi, sauerkraut, dill pickles, hot chili salt, pickled okra, and corn relish. It works perfectly and tastes exactly like salt. So my family and I eat delicious home-fermented foods without any increase in our sodium levels.

[cutabove]

After a major heart attack six years ago I suffer from a level of heart failure. My heart was already enlarged after going through three massive rounds of chemo and more chemo in preparation of a bone marrow transplant. My BNP was over 700 after the heart attack. I gave up salt and don't eat processed or restaurant food. My BNP is now 253 after giving up the salt. My natural sodium intake is between 200 mg and 300 mg a day for the last six years. My latest echo showed my enlarged heart is now normal sized with the only lingering problem is a slight thickening of the left side wall. My doctor is amazed.

[mikev]

This doesn't necessarily mean sodium is bad, it may mean you need a better balance between sodium and potassium, both essential nutrients.

[andreasrydstrom]

Impressive results! as a registered dietitian I often discuss salt intake with my cvd-patients and recommend a brand of mineral salt we have here in Sweden where they've replaced 50% of the sodium with potassium and magnesium. It's such an easy change for many of my patients. now I have some good statistics of the benefits to present as well! I can recommend the alternativets with magnesium since it too can help improve heart pressure. thank you!

[johnpierce]

I have hypertension and years ago before being diagnosed I tried potassium chloride. There’s definitely a different taste. I’ve never been much for adding salt to food once it’s cooked, but cooking with salt is a must, it’s the best flavor modifier known. I do appreciate the information provided by the study, using a combination of potassium and sodium is something I’m going to try

[DrTomMD]

Essentially nailed it!
The only issue is that many people find pure potassium chloride, doesn’t taste favorable, metallic aftertaste for many.
The 50-50 versions like Morton Lite Salt work phenomenally well for taste and effect and we use it in our house… and, just like you, I have made sure it’s what’s available in my mothers home 👍🏽
#FellowMamasBoyDoc

[oatie_]

There’s a brand called NoSalt that’s pretty easy to find at my local grocery stores. My mom would always buy it when I was a kid and I thought it was a weird health thing. Turns out it was a smarter choice than I thought

[UVJ_Scott]

I’m 74 and because my BP was 137/90 or higher I was prescribed Lisinopril/HCTZ. About a year ago I switched to Morton Lite Salt, subsequently I’ve had to decrease my blood pressure medication by 75% as I was getting dizzy whenever I stood up. My BP was as low as 91/51.

[HuntBobo]

Potassium is good. But it tastes metallic to a modest degree, as personally experienced. A salt free diet does sensitize salt perception and dramatically increases appreciation of other flavors masked by sodium chloride.

[DaviDeMarco]

I watched this video a couple weeks ago and have been trying since then a mixed Na/K salt, so I came back to provide a feedback! I found the downside to it (there had to be one!). It's taste. It's a little bitter compared to normal salt, so this might be a problem to those more demanding taste buds! Not a huge deal, but there's an aftertaste.
Obrigado por mais um excelente video, Gil!

[mattchambers]

It would be awesome to see a video on histamine intolerance issues with diet and what literature exist out there about managing/fixing it. A lot of people (myself included) struggle with this issue.

[Eric_G]

Hey Gil, I wanted to mention that I started using potassium chloride as a salt substitute after watching your videos but I started to run into a problem. My blood pressure started to rise. I have history of stroke so my cardiologist put me a beta blocker because I have high blood pressure. I tried a lot of other blood pressure medications but the only I found, that had minimal side effects was Bystolic. When I looked online I discovered that it was the potassium chloride interacting with the Bystolic that was causing the sudden, sharp rise in my BP. So I stopped using the potassium chloride and everything is back to normal. Just so you know, my BP went from about 120/70 to 170/117. So maybe you need to warn people that potassium chloride is not the greatest salt substitute for everybody and for people like me, who have a history of stroke, it could potentially be lethal.

[NoahNobody]

Thanks for the info. I'll have to try this.

In Finland we have sometihng call Pansuola (Pan salt?) It has the following...
Sodium chloride 57%,
Potassium chloride 28%,
Magnesium sulfate 12%,
Lysine hydrochloride 2%,
Anticaking agent 1%,
Potassium iodide 0, 0036%

[efanjul]

Sodium needs vary within the frame of your dietary amount of carb intake. A high carb diet causes you to retain more water, and sodium will need to be reduced, as opposed to a low-carb diet, in which you have to increase your electrolyte intake.

[Ravenccs]

I am really interested in your upcoming video about too little salt. I have decreased my salt dramatically over the last year and have seen enormous improvement in my BP. I asked my Dr.s about minimum salt because I don't eat processed foods or eat out. All salt I eat is added purposefully. One general practitioner told me minimum 500 mg per day. My neurologist told me to keep it between 600-1000 mg per day. I would like to see the science behind this, as it is VERY easy for me to go to ZERO per day, and I have seen vegans on youtube who claim they do this and they are healthy. Currently I stay around 600 mg per day. It is true that once you drop the amount of salt, even a little salt tastes really salty!! Thanks for your

[gxm]

This is the best nutrition channel Ive come across and Ive been watching stuff on nutrition for more than a decade now. That being said, he seems to be filmed by a flip phone camera. Investing in a good quality camera and lighting would go a long way in matching the quality of the content with quality of production. Sound is ok, which is the most important.