Bloated stomach, unexplained weight gain, sleepless nights, weird headaches are some of the common symptoms associated with overeating salt. However, with an increase in processed, canned, and fast foods, it is a fact that today's diet has a lot of salt hence why controlling sodium intake as a whole has become increasingly important. Below are the reasons why excess salt is unhealthy and hints on how to get rid of salt in your body.

Why Do You Need to Get Rid of Salt in Your Body

The recommended salt intake is 2300mg in adults, however many people eat 3500mg with some going as far as eating 15000mg of salt in one day. The most common symptoms of too much salt intake include feeling bloated and having a headache. However, to fully understand the dangers of too much salt, below are the health impacts of too much salt and core reasons why you need to get rid of excess salt in your body.

1. Blood pressure

One of the reasons why you should learn how to get rid of salt in your body is because it causes an increase in blood pressure. An increase in salt intake causes the corresponding retention of water. The retention causes an increase in the volume of blood, which leads to elevated pressure.

2. Heart health

With an increase in blood pressure due to an increase in salt intake, it's natural to expect an increase in strains on the heart. Usually, excessive water intake causes an increase in the amount of blood, which increases blood pressure and causes stress on the heart.

3. Kidney function

One of the main kidney functions is filtering salt and various minerals that you eat. Excessive intake of salt leads to accumulation that slows down the kidney. As this leads to complications such as bloating, weight gain, and an increase of toxicity in your body, you should learn various ways on how to remove salt from your body.

4. Diabetes

Those who have diabetes watching out for both salt and sugar intake is imperative. Though salt doesn't directly increase the risk of diabetes, researches have proved that it increases the risk of complications due to diabetes.

Though most people do not get severe reactions when they overeat salt, it does not mean that there are no underlying reactions. Severe headaches, bloating, and feeling lethargic are all symptoms you should watch out when you suspect you are overeating salt.

How to Get Rid of Salt in Your Body

As seen above, the dangers of too much salt intake are adverse and dangerous. Unfortunately, the everyday diet of most people usually includes loads of added salt for both taste and preservation purposes. It's essential to learn how to get rid of salt in your body to reduce the chances of suffering from long-time effects. Below are five simple tips you can find useful.

1. Stay hydrated

A simple way of getting rid of excessive salt in your body is to increase your water intake. Throughout the day, aim to stay hydrated by drinking at least eight glasses of water and eating fruits like melons. However, though drinking sports drinks might be enticing, it's wise to reduce them as they do not help in the dilution of excess salt in your body.

2. Get exercise

Fortunately, a great way to get rid of salt and get the adrenaline pumping is through exercising. Exercising allows you to break a sweat, which will enable you to lose up to 500mg of salt. As a result, you can drastically reduce the amount of salt in your body hence maintaining proper electrolyte balance.

3. Eat food rich in potassium

Potassium is a natural and balancing element of high sodium intake. As expected, a great way of how to reduce salt in your body quickly is by partaking foods high in potassium. Such foods include bananas, strawberries, leafy greens like spinach and kale, melons, and citrus fruits.

4. Consult your doctor on your lifestyle

Raise your concerns to your doctor and ask for advice on lifestyle practices that have safety plans for the salt decrease in your body. Of course, they must be friendly to your current health status or condition. People with conditions such as diabetes or high blood pressure requires the doctor`s intervention or a registered dietitian.

5. DASH diet approach

Consider a recommendation for a low sodium diet- the DASH diet. Where your body`s necessity of salt determines the intake. The amount of sodium you will take in this diet is much lower than the normal. DASH diet is most suitable for reducing salt in the body of hypertensive patients.

As the effects of too much salt intake are severe, it's best to keep your salt intake in check. However, if you are strictly checking on your salt intake and still suffering from severe effects, its best to visit the hospital.

Summary

Though it might seem easier to choose canned, processed, or fast food when you are in a rush, the amount of added salt might be causing harm to your body. To counteract this and learn how to get rid of salt in your body, aim to prepare your foods where you have full control of what goes into your meals or choose reduced salt options. As always, remember to stay hydrated at all times to flush excess salt from your body and reduce the effects of overeating salt.