Melody - another thing - salt - when I get very dizzy my docs have my salt load - it helps...

kmeb:

See what I just posted.

What does Salt Load mean??

Thanks, Melody

When I'm having BP problems and get dizzy - the docs tell me to drink salty broth - not being medical person not sure why - but the salt is important in keeping my BP up.....

This intense restriction of the diet, appears extreme to me.

I was on a restricted diet when I was pregnant. No pickles, canned soups etc.
It was 2gm daily max. (this is no longer done in pregnancy BTW)

Please read these:
http://heartdisease.about.com/cs/hyp...a/saltwars.htm

Not everyone is salt sensitive:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/en...indexed=google

http://drmirkin.blogspot.com/2007/06...wer-blood.html

Moderation is the key word. No pickles, canned soups etc...(although new ones are very low sodium now), and things like pretzels/chips, salted nuts.

But without sodium you cannot maintain enough blood pressure to get to the brain. And with working out and sweating, I'd think some sodium is needed.

It only takes one faint to hit the head, and kill you. My husband's mother hit her head in the bathroom, and was dead in 12 hrs, at age 42.

Oh, I get it. His pressure is usally 100/69 or therabouts and he is on 25 of the metoprolol. He was told no-salt by the cardiologist when he had the stent. and he was told no salt when he got the menieres and the vertigo.

Something about vertigo and salt (the two don't go together).

I'm going to take his blood pressure when he gets home.

He does put ketchup on his food (that has some sodium). I just don't cook with any sodium.

But foods that he does eat, like at Dunkin Donuts, (well there's sodium in that),

In this house, I don't cook with salt, and he doesn't put it on his food.

Can a person who has a stent, well can that person ever go off the metorolol?? I once asked Dr Fred's partner in the office this question and he said "no, you have a stent, you need to be on blood pressure meds".


And since he has been put in the hospital with Vertigo and then the ear nose and throat guy said "you have menieres", that means reduce your salt. So we did and he hasn't had a bad bout of vertigo ever since we reduced the salt.

Well, now I'm confused. Is he getting that dizzy spell because of the low-sodium diet. Or did he get the dizzy spell because he cheated and ate stuff with salt??

See the oxymoron of this whole thing.

No concrete answers.

I'll tell him to go to Dr. Fred and get checked out.

Like he's going to listen to me. Yeah, right!!!

??????????
mel

the word is moderation.

(I hope I get to finish this post....the red X's are coming now!)

No ADDED salt. No foods really HIGH in salt...pretzels, soups, etc (there are new low salt ones).

Just the salt in your food. Avoid high consumption of processed foods.

But a brownie here or there? or a piece of cake? I don't see these as evil...only if eaten in excess. Give the guy a break... let him have some fun.

Doctors ALWAYS say avoid salt. Because in the US people OD on it.
But it only has a negative impact on people very sensitive to it...for example African Americans are considered salt sensitive. Since his BP is low anyway, I'd let him have some things here and there.

Very low blood pressure does not deliver blood to the brain, and people with Adrenal malfunctions are given salt to RAISE blood pressure.

Since you can take his BP...do this: Do a log for a week. Take BP first thing in the morning, and several times of day, and at night. You will find it highest in the morning, and lowest at bedtime. See how much it varies, and test it with some salty food once. See if it goes up. Better to know what is happening than restricting him willy nilly when it might not be needed. IMO.

I get red X's when I try to edit....

Moderation means....do not SALT your food, or eat salty snacks, or pickles, etc.

Only obtain salt from your food (and not highly processed foods).

You know a serving of Low Fat Ruffles potato chips has very little salt.
A serving has 180mg of sodium. That is pretty LOW.

http://www.fritolay.com/fl/flstore/c...ts_ruffles.htm

www.nutrition.org
is a good resource to check content of foods. Check out sodium there.

Psoriasis is definitely autoimmune. Psoriasis is a systemic disease, not just skin disease.

I get dizzy not matter what position I'm in...it comes and goes without rhyme or reason.

Allen will need to learn some lessons on his own.

You need to devote all that caring energy towards you. Cantankerous men need to learn their own lessons.

get several days done, with numbers that seem consistent.
Then eat salt one day, and see if tomorrow it is elevated.
Blood pressures go down at night..so the same night may not
show much. The next morning will however, since morning pressures are
higher anyway..after a salty day it should be higher. IF he is salt sensitive that is. There may be no effect. This does not mean he can go crazy with salt,
but he won't have to give up everything, either, perhaps.

watch for hidden salt too. here is a pretty good article that gives you different names. plus..if you ever eat out...who knows how much you are getting.

http://vm.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/fdsodium.html

Aiming to get some idea of a food's sodium content, consumers knowledge able about sodium-restricted diets looked for names like sodium caseinate, monosodium glutamate, trisodium phosphate, sodium ascorbate, sodium bicarbonate, sodium stearoyl lactylate, and other sodium-containing ingredients, including salt (sodium chloride).