05 April 2010

Scared of Salt? Don't be!

Salt so long has been painted a villain to health – it is blamed for high blood pressure and its complications such as heart disease, stroke and kidney damage. But just as most things in life, take this bit of information with a grain of salt.

Though demonized many a time, salt is not as sinister as you might think. NaCl is a good thing – it is a nutrient essential to human life. Salt helps regulate various bodily processes such as digestion, nerve transmission, and even muscle contraction. And though its name has been dragged into many debates on heart diseases, salt regulates heart contractions – after all, the heart, too, is a muscle.

As an electrolyte, it facilitates osmosis, or the process that involves the transportation of nutrients across cell membranes. Salt helps maintain that critical balance between cells and body fluids.

Too little salt has its own adverse effects as well. Too little of it can lead to dehydration, muscle cramps, dizziness, and water intoxication. And because of its vital role in osmosis, studies have shown that sodium-deficiency can also contribute to the depletion of other minerals the body needs such as calcium, magnesium, potassium and B vitamins.

But life isn’t just a series of bodily processes, is it? When eating, who thinks of food as a bulk of nutrients to be broken down and distributed through the bloodstream?

Food is not meant for sustenance alone, it is meant to be enjoyed. So don’t languish in tastelessness just for the sake of longevity.

Give your body – and your taste buds – a treat with the salt that has the right balance of minerals. PANSALT® is real salt but with 43% less sodium and with the essential minerals potassium and magnesium.

PANSALT® was developed in Finland by health experts after years of extensive research and is ideal for the health-conscious, hypertensives, and stroke patients. It has also been found to improve the therapeutic effects of treatment drugs for high blood pressure and is virtually devoid of the harmful effects of common salt.

Healthy living need not be bland. PANSALT® is available in 50g (50 x 1g sachet) and 450g boxes at leading supermarkets and drugstores. For more information, visit www.pansalt.ph or contact (63-2) 531-4881 / 0917-811-SALT (7258).