大家都知道鹽吃多了對身體不好,但很多人對鹹味上癮,吃淡的味道很不習慣,因此千方百計找理由給自己愛吃鹽的借口:比如鹽是人體的必須品,吃得不夠會生病;“人不吃鹽就沒有力氣”(來自上個世紀一個共產黨搞宣傳的黑白電影)。
我本人一直不吃鹽,運動和體力勞動幹得很多,出汗很多(我的汗是淡的),我從來不覺得需要吃鹹東西。為了搞清楚人每天到底需要多少鹽,我上網查了一下權威說法:
American Heart Association: How much sodium should I eat per day? | American Heart Association
人一天鹽的攝入量不應該超過1.5克。注意,這1.5克是上限,不是下限。下限多少?人體對鹽的基本需求是每天0.5克-這是下限-但如果不偏食,正常人從食品中獲取的天然鹽分早就超過這個標準了。況且,腎髒對鹽分有很好的保留功能,如果你攝入的鹽份不夠,那麽腎髒就不會把體內現有的鹽分排出去。所謂的多吃多排,少吃少排,不吃補排。
Healthline.com:Daily Salt Intake: How Much Sodium Should You Have? (healthline.com)
人體一天最少需要186毫克的鹽,這是最低的下限。但如果你的食品中天然鹽分少於這個數字,你早就餓死了:
140 g chicken: 115 mg sodium
一個50克雞蛋:62 mg
A cup of milk: 107 mg
3 oz beef: 61 mg
A cup of fresh cooked spinach: 527 mg
61 g carrot: 42 mg
100 g of cooked shrimp: 111 mg
200 g raw atlantic salmon: 117 mg
隻要你飲食均衡,肉類和蔬菜都吃,即使菜裏一顆鹽都不加,食品中天然鹽分足足夠人體的需要了。
如果飲食不均衡,那可能需要補充。比如上個世紀一個共產黨搞宣傳的黑白電影裏說,人不吃鹽就沒有力氣-當時人是以白米飯和大白菜為主食,白菜70克裏含46毫克鹽,白米飯158克裏含2毫克鹽,自然含鹽很少,如果飲食以白米飯和白菜為主,沒有肉類,就需要加鹽。
我本人自從出國留學時候自己做飯,為了節省時間而懶得放鹽和醬油,發現不鹹的飯菜更好吃後,就一直不再往菜裏放鹽。目前人到中年(54),身體一直保持大學時候的體重和體型(腹肌一直明顯)。我嶽父在中國時候40開始有高血壓,吃了20年的降壓藥。來美國後,因為我們家飲食清淡,他血壓很快恢複正常,今年75,也不需要吃降壓藥。然而每次回國遊玩,在中國餐館吃喝,血壓立馬上升。因此他對此很矛盾:回國看親戚朋友是件很開心的事,但必須用身體健康來做代價。這估計也是中國人平均壽命比美國華人低很多的原因。
Mayo Clinic和我的觀念一樣,做菜不加鹽,你會覺得新鮮食品的天然味道比加了鹽更香:Sodium: How to tame your salt habit - Mayo Clinic
Lifespan.org 健康人每天隻需要200-500毫克的鹽:How Much Sodium a Day Do You Need? | Lifespan
Lifescience.com:不用擔心鹽吃得太少,我們隻需要擔心吃得太多:How Much Salt Do You Need to Survive? | Live Science
我最感到痛心的是:大部分人自己吃得很鹹,然後把全家食品都做得鹹,讓孩子們一代一代把這種惡習傳下去。如果自己戒不了這種惡習,至少應該不在孩子的食品裏放鹽,給孩子一個健康口味的機會:
We Don't Need to Add Salt to Food - HealthyChildren.org
Salt and children - Action on Salt
Children
Once your child is eating the same foods as the rest of the family it is important to continue not adding any salt to their food. This will also benefit the rest of the family! It is at this point that children’s salt intake tends to increase dramatically due to eating higher salt foods.
Homemade meals cooked using fresh ingredients are naturally lower in salt than convenience meals and processed food. Limit foods that are high in salt, and always check nutritional information, even on products aimed at children, and choose those with less salt. A low salt diet throughout childhood will help prevent children developing a taste for salty foods and reduce the likelihood of them eating a diet high in salt during adulthood.