I've read this article twice now. It refers to several trials and summarizes their findings in one or two sentences. It seems like the point is that some studies have shown that lowering sodium intake lowers blood pressure but may not significantly affect prolonging length of life or diminishing the possibility of future heart disease. I did wonder about one sentence: "One could still argue that all these people should reduce their salt intake to prevent hypertension, except for the fact that four of these studies - involving... patients with chronic heart failure - reported that the people eating salt at the lower limit of normal were more likely to have heart disease than those eating smack in the middle of the normal range." How is someone already suffering from heart failure more likely to develop heart disease? Isn't chronic/congestive heart failure considered heart disease? And I'd really like more information on this statement: "But four years ago, Italian researchers began publishing the results from a series of clinical trials, all of which reported that, among patients with heart failure, reducing salt consumption increased the risk of death." My husband has heart failure and I know what excess salt in his diet does to him. His heart works at about 15% capacity of a normal person's heart. Too much salt and his feet swell up and are extremely painful for days. His lungs fill up with fluid, and, as a result, he has difficulty breathing and lying down to sleep. The concerns about future health are nothing compared to the discomfort of living with overly salty foods. For him, it's a matter of quality of life now. I know some people who suffer from Meniere's disease and following a low sodium diet allows them to control their symptoms and live a useful life. The same with those whose kidney functions are compromised. One of the telling statements was "...the normal salt intake - was one and a half teaspoons a day, almost 50 percent above what federal agencies consider a safe upper limit for healthy Americans under 50, and more than double what the policy advises for those who aren't so young or healthy." 1-1/2 tsp of salt is about 2500 mgs. of sodium. But most Americans consume far more each day if they eat fast food, processed foods, salty snacks, etc. I've read some low sodium advocates encouraging others to lower their sodium intake to 500-800 mgs. per day. I personally think that's going overboard. Perhaps that's the kind of low sodium diets being studied. If that's the case, then I could understand the negative results. (Also,the statements summarizing these various trials and studies should define what constituted a low sodium diet -- 500 mgs., 800 mgs., 1200 mgs., 1500 mgs.) Trying to keep your sodium intake too low means not only forgoing added salt but also denying yourself many tasty and nutritious foods that may have a high sodium content naturally. Six years ago my husband's doctors told him to shoot for about 2000 mgs. per day, and that's what we've stuck with.

MSG is bad. And it has not been used for centuries anywhere. It was lab-developed in 1907. There are natural glutamates and there is monosodium glutamate. I started looking into it a while back because I do experience bad effects from eating it - especially in hot liquid form (Chinese restaurant soups, for example). Manufacturers are hiding it now - look for: "Monosodium glutamate is one of several forms of free glutamate used in foods. Free glutamate can also be present in a wide variety of other additives, including hydrolyzed vegetable proteins, autolyzed yeast, hydrolyzed yeast, yeast extract, soy extracts, and protein isolate, any one of which may appear as "spices" or "natural flavorings." The food additives disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate are usually used along with with monosodium glutamate-containing ingredients, and provide a likely indicator of the presence of monosodium glutamate in a product [6]. For this reason, the FDA considers labels such as "No MSG" or "No Added MSG" to be misleading if the food contains ingredients that are sources of free glutamate, such as hydrolyzed protein.[6] In 1993, FDA proposed adding the phrase "(contains glutamate)" to the common or usual names of certain protein hydrolysates that contain substantial amounts of glutamate.[6] For example, if the proposal were adopted, hydrolyzed soy protein would have to be declared on food labels as "hydrolyzed soy protein (contains glutamate)."[citation needed]" It has been accepted and infused into our manufactured food processes for a long time, just as high-fructose corn syrup is prevalent now. Both the above are prevalent in commercial pet foods as well. They are both unnatural substances touted as natural (because they are made/isolated/tweaked from natural substances) and safe. You can find all kinds of info on it on the web now, so go for it. It's another reason not to eat processed foods if possible. And who knows what additive they'll lab-create next and how it will affect us.

HereÂs an excerpt from an article called "Salt: What is wrong with it?" The flaw in this theory is that most petfoods do not rely on salt as a seasoning. If you have ever tasted petfood, you know one thing for sure: It is bland. For our palate, it could do with a bit of salt seasoning. But in petfood salt is primarily used to a level necessary to meet nutrient requirements. Short of renal or heart failure, hypertension is not a big issue for dogs or cats. So, is there really anything wrong with salt? This article goes on to discuss the misconceptions about salt and its perceived health risk. Here is a link that might be useful: Is salt bad for pet food?

Wish my husband would take this healthy-eating, need to exercise attitude more seriously. Good for your DH to actually do something about his health - he will thank himself when he's in his 60's! Our big sabotage to healthy eating is all these car club gettogethers, with the potluck (one club REALLY know how to put out the good food!) so summer is actually full of more temptations for us - plus the cruise nights at - where else - a fast-food drivein. I've gotten really good at finding the low-cal, less dangerous items on the menu, but it's hard! I like alot of the stuff that's good for me, but DH goes for the double cheese-greasy, and of course, it comes with fries! We're starting to eat before we go to the drive-ins, and when I fix a meal, I stress to him - "now, the green beans are part of the meal" - or "there's your dish of peaches" etc. - and he's starting to eat them - used to just say "I don't want any right now" and I'd let it go - but I want him around a few more years, so I keep encouraging him. Eating right is a lifelong habit.