Sodium is essential for the body to stay hydrated. It is the mineral that puts water into our cells. It is also necessary for transmitting nerve impulse, and influencing the contraction and relaxation of muscles. Important stuff. But as you probably are aware, most people get too much sodium. People that really need to worry about getting enough sodium are endurance athletes. They need more salt because of excessive sweating.
Deficiency, which is rare, can cause hyponatremia, an electrolyte disturbance, characterized by lethargy, confusion, muscle twitching, seizures and coma.
The minimum requirement is 500 mg a day. The average American gets 3,000 - 5,000 mg per day. Getting too much sodium can cause high blood pressure and edema (swelling in the tissues due to excess fluid). High intakes of sodium can also cause osteoporosis because you end up losing more calcium via your urine. Vegans can easily get too much sodium as well. For example, the Boca Burger contains 280 mg of sodium. A Boca Chik’n Patty has 430 mg of sodium. And let’s not forget about the soy sauce on our veggies, which is around 920 mg per tablespoon (reduced sodium is around 700 mg), vegetable bouillon (987 mg per half cube), the salt in hummus, on popcorn, in soup… It’s all over!
If you’re ever in need of a “salty” substitute, I recommend Mrs. Dash
Lily Says:
Mrs. Dash is great, especially on popcorn.
I think some vegans are almost more prone to getting too much sodium because so many of us eat a lot of prepared vegan meals. You mentioned Boca Burgers; when I first went vegan I didn’t even think about the amount of sodium. Something people really need to watch out for is soup, although I think most people already know about the excessive amounts of sodium there.
Great blog. Keep up the good work!
November 8th, 2007 at 4:17 pm
www.topbloodpressureadvice.info » Sodium. Less is more. Says:
[...] Emily added an interesting post on Sodium. Less is more..Here’s a small excerpt:Getting too much sodium can cause high blood pressure and edema (swelling in the tissues due to excess fluid). High intakes of sodium can also cause osteoporosis because you end up losing more calcium via your urine. … [...]
November 9th, 2007 at 6:10 am
Jaz Says:
Eh…Most prepared veggie meals are NOT vegan. Eggs, Eggwhites, milk, and other animal derived products are included in most of them. Boca Burgers have Eggs in them. So they are not Vegan. A true vegan watches their intake of ALL minerals and needed nutrients. There’s alot more to look out for than sodium….
newstarget.com
February 14th, 2008 at 3:50 pm
Emily Says:
There are vegan Boca burgers. Says “vegan” right on the box. And, yes, plenty of veggie meals are not vegan. Especially Morningstar brand. But I’m pretty sure most vegans check labels religiously. I know I do. And there are enough vegan processed foods that sodium is still an issue.
February 14th, 2008 at 8:13 pm
Happy Vegetable » Blog Archive » A Kick in the Health Says:
[...] It can be easy to overload on salt. Don’t forget about all the salt-like seasonings out there that contain no salt at all, like [...]
December 3rd, 2008 at 5:41 pm