SALT Your Way to Health: Brownstein

Salt is one of the most misunderstood nutrients. Dr. David Brownstein, M.D. and holistic medicine practitioner, sets the record straight on our need for salt in Salt Your Way to Health.

We have heard from the medical establishment for years that salt is bad for your health and we have been told to eat a low-salt diet. This is not only incorrect information but potentially dangerous.

• Table Salt vs. Unrefined Salt It's critically important to understand the difference between refined table salt and unrefined forms of salt such as sea salt or Himalayan pink salt. Table salt is an industrial compound with little nutritional value beyond the manufactured sodium and chlorine while sea salt has over 80 additional trace minerals that are important to your overall health. Dr. Brownstein recommends that you avoid table salt and provide your body the salt it needs with 1/2 to 1 tsp per day of unrefined salt.
• Dietary pH It is also important to understand the importance of the aggregate pH of the foods that you eat and their effect on your body. The body requires a pH of 7.2 and the body organs will insure that no matter what you eat, it will maintain your blood plasma at a pH of 7.2, virtually at all costs. Junk foods in general have an acidic impact and must be offset by alkaline foods that are high in mineral content. Our "natural" (or paleo) diet consists of whole foods that include meats, which are somewhat acidic, balanced by the alkalinity of healthy fruits and vegetables. 
• Table Salt is Acidic A simple experiment shows that a teaspoon of Celtic sea salt raises the pH of 1/2 cup of filtered water by 0.4 (makes it more alkaline) while refined salt lowers it by 0.4 (makes it more acidic).
• The SAD is Acidic The Standard American Diet (SAD) -- high in processed foods, sugars, and refined salt -- is highly acidic. The body needs minerals to offset this acidity, often leaching calcium from bones -- a common cause of osteopenia and osteoporosis in older men and women.
• Sea Salt Production Process Production of sea salt is an ancient process that involves drying sea water in the sun to produce brine -- a process that retains the dozens of minerals inherent in sea water. Magnesium and potassium, two minerals crucial to our health, are included in significant quantity in sea salt. 75% of Dr. Brownstein's patients are deficient in magnesium and most Americans are potassium deficient, so sea salt is beneficial to your health.
• Sea Salt is Heart Friendly A quoted study showed that participants with the lowest salt intake had over four times the incidence of heart attacks as those on the highest salt intake. So more salt rather than less salt is good for your heart!
• Minerals are Important Studies have shown that deficiencies in minerals such as calcium, potassium, and magnesium are directly related to the development of hypertension and heart disease.
• Cellular Electrolyte Balance The sodium in salt is a critical part of electrolyte balance in and around our cells. Sodium outside of the cells is balanced against potassium inside of the cells and various metabolic processes move ions through the cell walls. Calcium and magnesium also play a role. Insufficient sodium in the extracellular space causes dehydration and acidosis on the inside of the cells -- even if water consumption is at adequate or high levels. The kidneys will work extra hard to try to hold onto the salt available -- over time, causing kidney problems. 
• Adrenal Impact of Refined Salt Chronic use of refined salt will impact the adrenal glands because it is lacking in the needed support minerals.Unrefined salt solves these problems.

So how did we get to where we are today: saltophobia? 

• Animal Studies The first reported relationship between salt and high blood pressure came from a study in 1904. For the next 50 years a series of (flawed) animal studies seemed to confirm these early reports. The animal studies predominantly used massive dosages of refined salt -- 10-20 times recommended dosages. When the salt was eliminated from the diet, the lowering of blood pressure was considered the proof that salt was bad. See my blog on the Intersalt Study for a detailed case study. 
• Human Studies Clinical trials on human subjects studying the relationship between salt intake and blood pressure shared two obvious and common flaws: (1) always used refined salt; and (2) did not consider the logical effect of the minuscule differences observed. In studies involving Caucasian subjects, the lowering of pressure averaged 1.27 mm Hg systolic and 0.57 mm Hg diastolic -- insignificant in patients with dangerous BP's in the 200 mm range. In one study involving African Americans, the results were 6.44/1.98. As a layman aware of these "findings" years ago and the imperceptible affect of alpha and beta blockers on my own blood pressure, I discontinued use of pharmaceuticals on my own.

A number of interesting case studies of Dr. Brownstein's patients illustrate the importance of understanding how low-salt diets cause dramatic problems that are easily corrected. These "snapshots" are but a sampling and abbreviated to give you a quick overview. The actual case studies provide additional, important details that you'll get from reading the book!

• Sue, 61, had food allergies so severe that she reacted to virtually everything she ate including vitamins. Upon testing, it was determined that the pH of her urine was very acidic and that refined salt made it more acidic. When she replaced refined salt with Celtic Sea Salt, her pH significantly increased (became less acidic) and her food allergies went away.
• Jack, 63, was treated for hypertension for seven years with a diuretic and beta blocker and felt terrible: low energy, low initiative, and severe brain fog. Since his other doctors told him to lower his salt intake, he had completely stopped using salt. Jack tested low on sodium, so Dr. Brownstein added minerals and unrefined salt to his diet. Within one week his head began to clear and after two months he dropped one blood pressure medication and reduced the dosage of the other by half.
• Barbara, 53, was shocked when her doctor told her that her blood pressure was 160/100 and was told she would have to take antihypertensive drugs for the rest of her life. Barbara avoided "salt at all costs because I thought it caused hypertension." Barbara tested low for sodium and was put on vitamin and mineral supplements and told to add 1/2 tsp of unrefined salt per day. Within two weeks her blood pressure had declined and within two months it was at 110/70. She is not on medication, sleeps better (and less per night) and feels much better.

Dr. Brownstein proves to my satisfaction the importance of adequate unrefined salt to our diets. If you are still skeptical because of our saltophobic brainwashing over the decades, please pick up a copy of his book so that you can examine the evidence in greater detail.