This blog post will take a balanced look at the physiological role of salt in our bodies and the effects of excessive consumption on our health.
People say, “Food tastes best when seasoned with salt.” In other words, the saltiness of the food we think is delicious is created when salt is added in moderation. People like the salty taste of salt, so they add it not because it adds saltiness, but because it has the effect of making food taste good. In particular, salt plays a role in cooking that is more than just a seasoning. Salt not only balances the flavors of food, but also acts as a catalyst to bring out the inherent flavors of the ingredients. This is why many chefs say that “salt is the key to awakening all the flavors.” Therefore, the proper use of salt is an important factor in determining the perfection of a dish.
Salt is not only used to enhance the taste of food, but it is also an essential mineral for physiological activity. We need to consume an appropriate amount of salt every day to maintain our health. This is because humans can survive without food for a long time, but we cannot survive without salt and water for a long time. For example, the fact that water and salt alone can sustain life to some extent even if food is not available for several days in extreme situations reminds us of the importance of salt.
Let’s take a look at why our bodies need salt. The chemical name of the table salt we eat is sodium chloride (NaCl), which is composed of 40% sodium and 60% chlorine. Sodium in table salt is essential for the absorption of monosaccharides, which are components of carbohydrates, and amino acids, which are components of proteins, into the blood. Therefore, if salt is not added to food, important nutrients such as carbohydrates and proteins are not properly absorbed into the blood and are eventually excreted. This means that salt is not just a simple seasoning but plays an important role in the body’s metabolic activities.
The sodium we ingest is mostly absorbed through active transport in the small and large intestines. Nutrients such as carbohydrates, proteins, and fats are broken down into glucose, amino acids, and fatty acids, respectively, and then absorbed in the small intestine by the difference in sodium concentration between intracellular and extracellular fluids. In particular, sodium plays an important role in glucose. Intestinal epithelial cells absorb sodium by using the difference in sodium ion concentration between the lumen of the small intestine and the small intestinal cells. At this time, nutrients such as glucose and amino acids are bound to one part of the protein carrier with two binding sites, and sodium is bound to the other part, and then both are transported together into the cell through the cell membrane. This complex process shows how important the absorption of sodium is for the normal functioning of the human body.
If there is no sodium in the intestine, important nutrients such as glucose and amino acids in the intestine cannot be absorbed into the blood and are eventually excreted from the body. The opposite is also true. In other words, if there is enough sodium in the intestine but not enough nutrients such as glucose or amino acids, sodium absorption is not properly carried out. If sodium absorption is not properly carried out, various diseases can occur. For example, diseases such as cholera and dysentery cause vomiting and diarrhea, which rapidly depletes the body of water, causing a decrease in plasma volume and a drop in blood pressure. In this case, the body is in danger because blood circulation is not smooth.
In particular, children can develop circulatory shock if they have diarrhea during the summer, and if they do not receive treatment in a short period of time, they can die. To prevent loss of water due to diarrhea, it is important to maintain a constant water content in the body, and to do so, sodium must be sufficiently absorbed. When sodium is sufficiently absorbed in the intestine, the osmotic pressure in the blood rises, causing water to move from the small intestine to the plasma through the osmosis phenomenon, increasing the water content in the plasma. As such, sodium is not just a nutrient, but plays an important role in maintaining the body’s physiological balance.
However, salt should be consumed in moderation to benefit health, and excessive consumption can lead to various health problems. The most common disease caused by excessive sodium intake is high blood pressure. Excessive sodium intake can also cause cardiovascular disease and obesity. Experts recommend consuming 200 mg to 1,000 mg of sodium per day. This is equivalent to about 0.5 g to 2.5 g of salt. This is generally the amount that can be sufficiently consumed through various foods, and it means that one should be careful not to overconsume it.
In Korean food culture, there are many foods with high sodium content, such as soups, stews, noodles, and side dishes, so maintaining a low-sodium diet is an important way to protect one’s health. In particular, fermented foods such as kimchi and jang (Korean sauces) are high in sodium, so it is necessary to consume them in moderation for health. Recently, more and more households are using low-sodium kimchi and low-sodium soy sauce to reduce sodium, and the food service industry is also continuing to develop low-sodium menus. For health, it is important to consciously reduce sodium intake, and to do so, it is desirable to minimize the use of salt and to compose a diet centered on natural foods.
