Seriously???

[rockquarry]

There's a lot of truth to that statement. The problem is not so much the salt shaker as it is the processed food. If you look at the OP, he's STARTING with 990mg of sodium before he even takes the sandwich out of the wrapper. The 10 or 20mgs that he adds with the shaker is only a few ounces of gasoline being thrown on a bonfire. Processed sodium and sugars added to food are the real problems. And it's true that you've made it to 60 without hypertension but there are a lot of things that go into it besides sodium and I'm going to bet that life style and genetics are playing a role. The only thing is that a lot of the problems are cumulative and once you hit a certain point, it starts catching up with you. By then it's too late. I'm not saying you shouldn't go to Arby's because an occasional order of curly fries is not going to hurt you but you need to know what you are putting into your body. The idea being to stay on your feet as long as you can so that you can enjoy the fruits of your labor as you age out.

True, for me anyway. I've tried to eat reasonably healthy and have stayed active for many years. I've never been much a fast food advocate; probably haven't purchased any in the last five years.

When I was a little over seventy, I was shocked to see my blood pressure had elevated to the point where my doctor put me on a mild dose of medicine to lower and regulate it. We're all different. Some of us can eat trash food forever and get away with it, but most of us can't. I suppose there are other factors involved, but diet has a lot to do with it.

 

[BC38]

There's a lot of truth to that statement. The problem is not so much the salt shaker as it is the processed food. If you look at the OP, he's STARTING with 990mg of sodium before he even takes the sandwich out of the wrapper. The 10 or 20mgs that he adds with the shaker is only a few ounces of gasoline being thrown on a bonfire. Processed sodium and sugars added to food are the real problems. And it's true that you've made it to 60 without hypertension but there are a lot of things that go into it besides sodium and I'm going to bet that life style and genetics are playing a role. The only thing is that a lot of the problems are cumulative and once you hit a certain point, it starts catching up with you. By then it's too late. I'm not saying you shouldn't go to Arby's because an occasional order of curly fries is not going to hurt you but you need to know what you are putting into your body. The idea being to stay on your feet as long as you can so that you can enjoy the fruits of your labor as you age out.

Yeah, moderation in all things is my motto.
So far I've never bought anything at a fast food place that I felt needed more salt.
I reserve my use of the salt shaker for home cooked foods. I don't eat canned vegetables (fresh or frozen only) and I know that they don't have added salt. Same with fried eggs, mashed potatoes. I don't salt packaged foods things like Kraft mac-n-cheese either. Only the stuff that was cooked from fresh. Most meats I'll try a bite to decide wheter it needs salt.
It just cracks me up when someone sees me put a little salt on my food and they say "Oh, you shouldn't do that! Too much salt is BAD for you!" Like I said before, that is true if you have conditions like high blood pressure. I don't.

BTW, in my case heredity isn't in my favor. Many in my family have been hypertensive, so it isn't like it doesn't run in the family. As for lifestyle, meh. Mines not terrible, but I'm no health and fitness nut either. Personally, I think it is more about attitude and temperament. I'm more optimistic than pessimistic, and I DON'T WORRY. I refuse to spend my time worrying about much of anything.

I think those two things combined do more to keep my blood pressure normal than anything else.