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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 12 of 12. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Dinah on June 5, 2006, at 21:33:18
I wonder if there's a biological mechanism to crave salt when the temperature gets unbearably high. It would make sense, wouldn't it?
I've been eating nothing but potato chips, salsa and chips, pickles, pickled eggs, pickled onions, croutons, Newmans Own Caesar dressing... Well, you get the picture.
And melons and pineapple.
I'm all bloated from water retention and my shoes and ring won't fit.
Posted by llrrrpp on June 5, 2006, at 21:34:46
In reply to Salt cravings, posted by Dinah on June 5, 2006, at 21:33:18
Racer can give you instructions on installing a salt lick on the side of your refrigerator
s--llrrrpp!!!
Posted by Dinah on June 5, 2006, at 21:38:48
In reply to Re: Salt cravings » Dinah, posted by llrrrpp on June 5, 2006, at 21:34:46
:)
Less calories than pickled eggs. But not nearly as much fun.
Posted by Phillipa on June 5, 2006, at 22:40:37
In reply to Re: Salt cravings » llrrrpp, posted by Dinah on June 5, 2006, at 21:38:48
I think you're bloated from too much salt. Drink plenty of water to even out your electrolytes. And are you in a cool room. The heat can make some crave salt. Love Phillipa
Posted by gardenergirl on June 5, 2006, at 23:11:13
In reply to Salt cravings, posted by Dinah on June 5, 2006, at 21:33:18
You're not secretly one of those salt-sucking aliens from Star Trek, are you?
I don't know why, but that episode has always stayed with me. That and the tribbles.
I think that salt cravings are a sign of something. It makes sense if you are sweating a lot that your body would want to conserve water. And maybe it's in conserve hyperdrive, hence the swelling? I always tend to swell more in the summer, too. Bleah. Swelling and sweating are nasty.
Stay cool.
gg
Posted by 10derHeart on June 5, 2006, at 23:37:07
In reply to Salt cravings, posted by Dinah on June 5, 2006, at 21:33:18
Check this out... (it's short)
http://www.arltma.com/CravingSaltNews.htm
For one thing, apparently the table salt we use to satisy these cravings (and all its evil cousins in our processed food) is "stripped" of natural goodness (other minerals, etc.), so sea salt and such would be much better. I knew that, about processed foods, of course (too MUCH of the stuff), but never though about the Morton's girl being sanitized (i.e., made less healthy) for our convenience.
But reading down near the end....my take, Dinah, is that either your body does the sodium/potassium transmutation thing, either because you live in a hot climate OR because you're an athlete.
Personally, I'd start telling everyone you know it's the latter :-)
Posted by MidnightBlue on June 5, 2006, at 23:41:37
In reply to Salt cravings, posted by Dinah on June 5, 2006, at 21:33:18
Dinah,
Me, too. Watermelons with LOTS of salt. Tomatoes with salt. Popcorn with salt.......
Sigh,
I'm a huge, fat, bloated balloon.MB
Posted by Larry Hoover on June 6, 2006, at 5:53:01
In reply to You may be transmutating to cool down » Dinah, posted by 10derHeart on June 5, 2006, at 23:37:07
> Check this out... (it's short)
>
> http://www.arltma.com/CravingSaltNews.htm
>
> For one thing, apparently the table salt we use to satisy these cravings (and all its evil cousins in our processed food) is "stripped" of natural goodness (other minerals, etc.), so sea salt and such would be much better.It's not stripped of goodness, it is selectively extracted, to provide e.g. magnesium to supply the aircraft industry with high-strength light-weight metals. They run an electric current through a brine solution, and pure metals deposit on one electrode.... which metal depending on the electrical potential being applied. Table salt is the last step along the way, almost, to total removal of metals from the brine, but they do also go on to isolate a substantial amount of sodium and potassium, both used in the creation of caustic soda and potash, respectively. Huge industries are built around the salt deposits underlying the Detroit/Windsor area of the Great Lakes. That used to be ocean, until it got landlocked, and all the water dried up. The salt is over a mile thick, down under there. Table salt once was sea salt, if you follow. It may contain dinosaur urine, if you follow further. ;-)
Sea salt is not processed, as above, but I'd be very careful where I bought my sea salt. I see "sea salt" products in the bulk stores that look surprisingly like table salt, but cost four times as much. Hmmmm. Nobody gonna pull a switcheroo, I hope. Hmmmm.
> I knew that, about processed foods, of course (too MUCH of the stuff), but never though about the Morton's girl being sanitized (i.e., made less healthy) for our convenience.
It's not really that much less healthy. It's merely different. You really wouldn't get much trace mineral out of sea salt, anyway. The biggest source is veggies.
I remember reading the label of a friend's hyper-expensive super-duper mineral supplement. It was composed of dolomitic limestone, and sea salt. All those friggin "trace minerals". Somebody just copied a list of what's been found in the ocean. I could tell, just by reading the label. I'm in the wrong business.
> But reading down near the end....my take, Dinah, is that either your body does the sodium/potassium transmutation thing, either because you live in a hot climate OR because you're an athlete.
The Kervan effect, that supposed transmutation thing, is merely bad science. He just didn't control his independent variables properly. People can appear to excrete excess minerals by drawing on their body stores. Certain of those minerals are impossible to accurately assess, even with modern scientific knowledge. He was just a bad scientist, who self-published.
I could debunk anything on this page: http://www.cheniere.org/books/aids/ch5.htm
If you wanna hear it.
It discusses "transmutation"..... but it really ought to be an examination of poor scientific method. I believe they recorded their observations correctly, but that's all they did correctly. It's just that the observations were meaningless, due to poor experimental design. They have precise measurements of meaningless values.
> Personally, I'd start telling everyone you know it's the latter :-)
I agree. Definitely the latter.
The best thirst-quenching solutions to take when you're perspiring heavily are the same ones used for pediatric oral rehydration. Available at any drug store. Or Gatorade. It was developed by the medical staff of the Florida Gators football team, to keep those behemoths on their feet in the heat in the late summer/early fall period. 300 lbs of sweating human can only take so much, ya know?
Apart from that, salt away. Salt restriction should only come on doctor's explicit orders, IMHO. Most normal people disrupt their own heart rhythm via salt restriction. People are more likely to die of heart attack on a salt restricted diet, even those who've already had a heart attack. Only those people with kidney problems related to diuresis should restrict salt, IMHO. They've generalized from a special population to the general population, and *that* is not based on good science.
My opinion may be worth what you paid for it.
Lar
Posted by Meri-Tuuli on June 6, 2006, at 6:09:03
In reply to Re: You may be transmutating to cool down » 10derHeart, posted by Larry Hoover on June 6, 2006, at 5:53:01
I crave salt when I'm badly hungover.
Posted by Nina78 on June 6, 2006, at 6:54:04
In reply to salt cravings..., posted by Meri-Tuuli on June 6, 2006, at 6:09:03
Drink nettle tea, that'll work as a diuretic. You can make icetea of it. A friend of mine had nettle & blueberrie. Made it very strong, and threw some sweetner in to take the edge of. Drank it cooled as ice-tea.
I have always wondered where my salt-cravings come from... I've had them all my life. It comes and goes, without any clear reason, and at any time of year. Last time was in january, so it wasn't because of the high temperatures! It comes to a point where I just lick salt straight from my hand!
It seems to run in my family. My mother had it, my grandfather had it, 1 uncle has it. BUT, my father didn't, my grandmother didn't, my other uncle doesn't, and my brother doesn't. So there must be a gene...
Nina
Posted by Dinah on June 6, 2006, at 11:12:14
In reply to Re: salt cravings..., posted by Nina78 on June 6, 2006, at 6:54:04
I'm definitely a cravings eater. I guess it's not the best way to eat, so perhaps I was trying to rationalize by thinking my body is trying to tell me something. :)
I think I probably need to drink more water, so that if my body is indeed trying to prepare me for drought (sp?), I can reassure it that water supplies are ample. I'll also look into nettle tea.
In the meantime, I bought another bottle of salad dressing and a couple of bags of croutons and I've got pickles everywhere. :) I'll try to cut back on the chips.
Posted by ClearSkies on June 6, 2006, at 20:07:50
In reply to Re: salt cravings..., posted by Dinah on June 6, 2006, at 11:12:14
I can become a serious pickle fiend. Eat too many and my teeth start to hurt!
Salty crunchy is my best friend. Until I can't take my ring off my finger.
This is the end of the thread.
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