Salt Question

[HCD77]

Today I saw my dr and he said I needed to have between 6,000 to 8,000 mg of salt per day. Im newly diagnosed . A friend went with me and wrote down the 6,000 to 8,000 mg but she didn’t write down salt or sodium . I know they are different calculations. I know we figured it to be about 1 tsp of salt per meal. I’m so so confused . I could ask him again. It just seems like a lot of salt. Anyone have any idea?  Thanks 😃

[MTRJ75]

You can get tablets (1 mg). That's almost seems a bit high though. I was told around 5K I think. 

[Dale H]

My Dr has me on 6000mg of SODIUM per day. I had the same confusion at first as I bought some 1000mg SALT tabs thinking there was a gram of sodium but later realized that SALT is sodium and chloride and that the SODIUM content of the 1000mg SALT tab is only 394mg of SODIUM. I now track everything by SODIUM, which is what I'm supposed to be getting 6 grams per day of.

I steer towards some high sodium content foods and try to get the majority of my sodium load early in the day. For instance I'll have a whole can of Campbell's Beef Vegetable soup for breakfast which gives me 2225mg of sodium. Chicken broth is another great source of sodium ~870mg in one cup. I aim to have about 4500mg sodium in me by 2PM along with 1.5 - 2 liters of water. This helps get my blood volume up for the day after dehydrating through the night while sleeping.

I'm also taking in 3 liters of clear water per day. This is addition to other drinks such as Boost or Gatorade.

Some good sodium sources I've used are Herb Ox Chicken Granulated Bouillon (870mg sodium/tsp) replaces the coffee I used to enjoy. Saltstick caps (215mg sodium) or 1 gram salt tabs (394mg sodium). 3 slices of turkey bacon with breakfast gives me 420mg sodium. Dill pickles are also loaded with sodium. I find it easier and more palatable to get my sodium through food instead of salt tabs which can cause indigestion/heart burn. I will use 1.5 salt tabs first thing in the morning with a protein bar and .5 liter water to help get me boosted on sodium and fluid.

Hope this helps,

-Dale

[Pistol]

I completely agree with @Dale H that consuming sodium in food beats the tablets. I cannot take the tablets b/c they make me throw up. So I consume many of the same foods that Dale H does: HerbOx broth with added salt, pretzels, olives, pickles - and I add A LOT of salt to everything I eat. However - I am not able to drink quite as much as the recommended fluids since i become nauseated from drinking too much, but if we take in that much salt we have to make sure to drink a lot of fluids since salt and fluids have to work together to be of benefit. 

[PotsieCrocheter]

Lisa C, I would definitely contact your doctor’s office to clarify. Taking the wrong amount of salt could be dangerous. Guessing for you wouldn’t be safe.

You brought up a very important topic. I’d love a POTS doctor to help explain the difference between salt and sodium, and provide easier calculations, if any. I’ve found it confusing when trying to figure out how much SaltSticks to substitute for my table salt.

I’m wondering how many POTS patients might be taking the wrong amount?

[Dale H]

Salt is sodium chloride NaCl. On my Morton Iodized Salt container 1/4 tsp (1500mg) of salt contains 590mg of sodium. My Saltsticks jar indicates that each Saltstick contains 215mg sodium so 3 Saltsticks would be 645mg sodium, 55mg more than a 1/4 tsp of table salt.

[HCD77]

Thank you all so much for your feedback! I am newly diagnosed and appreciate all the support here! 😃

[PotsieCrocheter]

😀