Sodium belongs to the micronutrients and is a base-forming bulk element.
Sodium is an essential nutrient. Did you know that? Fortunately, it is only needed in small quantities. Sodium is so omnipresent that a surplus is more likely than a deficiency. It is ubiquitous because it is a component of sodium chloride and, consequently, wherever chloride is found. Sodium chloride, as we know, is also common salt. Table salt is found in every ready-made meal. Not only that, there is hardly a dish that is not salted. But don't worry, doing without commercially available table salt does not automatically mean a deficiency. After all, chloride and sodium are found in almost every food.
The amount of sodium in the body depends not only on intake but also on excretion. We excrete sodium via
Sweating (heat, sports, steam bath, sauna...)
▽ tears
▽ Urine
▽ Bowel movements
▽ Vomiting
▽ diarrhoea
off. In acute cases of increased sodium loss, symptoms of dehydration may occur. In these cases, compensation with an electrolyte drink is recommended. This is because sodium as well as potassium & chloride also belong to the electrolytes. Electrolytes ensure communication between cells and the transmission of information in the nerve network.
Overview
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Function of sodium
Sodium has two essential tasks in our organism:
Water conductor | Sodium regulates the water balance in the body.
Mineral taxi | And it transports minerals through the cells. More precisely, through the cell membrane.
Deficiency & overdose
According to the SGE, the optimal daily amount for an adult person is between 3.1mg and 3.8mg. For children, the value is between 0.25mg and 3.2mg.
Daily requirement
Sodium requirements also increase with age. As usual, the blue numbers are recommendations of the SBU. For once, I disagree for people between 15 and 65, because I am convinced that a daily amount of 550mg instead of 1500mg is perfectly sufficient. This is because we tend to eat a diet too rich in sodium and a surplus is more likely than a deficiency. In this respect, I am of the opinion that the daily requirement must be reduced accordingly. Even if you find a list of top 5 foods rich in sodium here, you can reckon that sodium is present in almost every food. If you add it up, the daily intake is higher than expected. For example, just 3.8g of common salt meets the daily sodium requirement of 550mg (PLANeTBASED recommendation). Hand on heart, you definitely eat more than 3.8 salt per day. Measure it out. Every time you cook your pasta, prepare your salad dressing or season your broth.
Plantbased sources
These top 5 foods meet the daily requirement of 550mg:
3.8g table salt
46g Black olives
70g marinated olives
155g cucumber
200g roasted & salted nuts
Other foods (sorted by content, top to low)
Sauerkraut juice (275g), tomato paste, rye bread, goji berries, stinging nettle, celery, poppy seeds (7kg)...
Electrolyte drink
In case of acute sodium loss due to supernaturally high sweating, vomiting or diarrhoea, the sodium balance can be restored with a homemade electrolyte drink. Here are a few possible recipes.
Il Classico
▽¾ Water
▽¼ Apple juice naturally cloudy, organic, in dark glass bottle
▽1TL table salt
Mix the water and apple juice. Stir in the salt. Ready.
The exotic
In the exotic version, the apple juice can be replaced with orange juice. However, the ratio to water is then 50/50
The soup queen
A bouillon is also considered an electrolyte drink
▽1L Bouillon (salted)
▽65g maltodextrin
xoxo your good-life coach Claudia 💋
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