The Real Reason You Can't Lose Weight

Sodium. We all know about it and we’ve allheard we eat too much of it; but what, really, is

sodium? And why does it matter if we eat toomuch of it? Well, for one, sodium, plain and

simple, is necessary for the body to function toproperly. It plays a vital role in water balance,nerve function, and a whole array of various

physiological functions that are of the utmostsignificance to our health. That said, we reallyonly need a small amount—500 mg, in fact. To

put that into perspective, you can get your dailyamount of sodium from a serving of chips,

crackers, canned food items, pickles, cheeses,pretzels, or even salted nuts. Even condimentslike ketchup and salad dressings are packed to

the brim with sodium.

Considering we get ourdaily intake from

something as simple as abag of pretzels, it is easy to

see how so manyAmericans are consuming

far too much sodium (like 4to 5k on a daily basis); andwe only need 500mg! Even

being conservative, thatmeans the majority ofAmerican adults are

processing 8 times moresodium than they should

be.

What’s really intriguingabout all of this is the fact

that salt is actually anincredibly addictive

substance. So it makessense that big food

manufacturers would pumpthe stuff into their products.

They want you to keepcoming back. They don’t

care about your expandingwaistline, only their

expanding pocketbook.

Additionally, aFinnish study thatwas published in2006 concluded

that there is aclear-cut link

correlation saltintake and obesity.From the 1980s to

the mid-1990s,Americans’ salt

intake increasedtremendously bymore than 50%.

When a man orwoman has a high

blood pressurereading of 140/85,their blood beginscoagulating into a

sort of salty sludge.Then, in reaction,

their body will startdumping extra water

into theirbloodstream which

results in theexpansion of bloodvessels—indicating

any number ofpotentially fatal

problems.

Well, now that I’ve established toomuch sodium is awful for you, here’s

what you can do to mitigate theeffects:

Consumer fewer processed foods

Choose fresh or frozen veggies, not canned

Purchase fresh meats, not canned, cured or smoked

Ask about unsalted meals at restaurants

Opt for low sodium versions of soups and snacks

Choose foods that don’t list salt or sodium in the first five ingredients

Use a salt-free herbal blend instead of a traditional salt shaker

Good luck, Godspeed, and stay healthy! Cheers!