After five years of Sridevi’s death, producer Boney Kapoor revealed that the actress used to experience blackouts due to her low-salt diets to “look good.” She was, in fact, following the same routine at the time of her death.
“The doctor kept on telling her (Sridevi) that you have a low BP (blood pressure) issue, don’t stick to a severe diet where you avoid salt. Because most of the females believe that salt creates water retention that’s why your face is puffy. That is one reason why Sri used to avoid salt. We used to tell her that even if you are having some salad, just sprinkle some salt on it,” Boney said.
Although it is a general notion that excess salt can influence water retention in the body, leading to a feeling of bloating, a severely low salt intake can also have detrimental health effects.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), consumption of five grams of salt is normal every day. But having too little could cause serious conditions like coma.
Studies have found that our sensitivity to salt varies from person to person, depending on factors as varied as ethnicity, age, body mass index, health and family history of hypertension.
What does sodium do to the body?
Dr Vikramjeet Singh, Senior Consultant, Internal Medicine at Aakash Healthcare, told IndiaToday.in that to understand why an individual shouldn’t cut out salt from their diet completely, we need to know what sodium does to the body.
The main component of salt, which is sodium, is one of the most important minerals in the body. It performs various functions, including cellular functions, regulates body fluid and maintains the electrolyte balance in the body.
If the electrolyte balance is delayed, there are side effects. “A healthy individual who doesn’t have kidney or heart problems should not go on a low-sodium or salt diet. Sodium is regulated by the kidneys. They see the concentration of sodium in the body fluid and start regulating it: either they release it or they hold it. If you have diabetes or high blood pressure, then you can only benefit from a low-sodium diet,” said Dr Vikramjeet Singh.
Dr Singh suggested that severe low salt intake can lead to a condition called hyponatremia.
What is hyponatremia?
The low concentration of sodium in the body, less than the normal 135 milliequivalents per litre (mEq/L), is called hyponatremia. In this condition, the body gets overwhelmed due to lack of salt, the muscles and cells begin to swell and it affects blood pressure.
“If you consume less than 2.4 grams of salt a day, then the kidneys will retain more and more salt due to lack of sodium. You will then experience electrolyte imbalance which causes blackouts, headaches, fatigue and dizziness,” said Dr Singh.
The expert said that patients who are on a keto diet often get dizziness with sodium levels as low as 131 or 132 mEq/L, and sometimes, less than 120 mEq/L.
Hyponatremia is of three types: mild, moderate and severe. Under mild and moderate conditions, a person can experience dizziness, blackouts, fatigue, headaches, nausea and lethargy.
In severe cases, which could be less than 120 mEq/L, a person can experience seizures, even coma and brain injury. However, having low salt should be practised by people who eat too much junk food like chips and fried foods, suggested Dr Singh.
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