Salt

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	The Greatest Gift is Love By Amy Newport Caring for a disabled or elderly family member can take its toll on the caregiver’s health, outlook and finances. read article

	Cutting Salt Could Save 150,000 Lives Each Year Salt — one of the most basic of flavorings – can be quite hazardous to your health. We know that a diet high in salt can lead to high blood pressure, heart attacks and strokes. read article

	Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Can Be Managed By Bassima Schbley, MSW, PhD, BSW In World War I it was called “shell shock.” In World War II it was “combat fatigue.” Today it has a more sophisticated description: “posttraumatic stress disorder” or PTSD. read article

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Cutting Salt Could Save 150,000 Lives Each Year Do you realize that there is a killer in your kitchen? There it is, innocently sitting on your kitchen table. Salt — one of the most basic of flavorings – can be quite hazardous to your health. We know that a diet high in salt can lead to high blood pressure, heart attacks and strokes. Because it can contribute to chronic disease and death, many health officials around the country have called on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to compel food manufacturers and restaurants to cut back on salt. The American Medical Association (AMA) is encouraging the FDA to develop warning labels for high sodium foods such as hot dogs and some canned soups. This is just one of the suggestions by the nation’s largest group of doctors to reduce the amount of salt that Americans are eating. On average, Americans eat about twice the recommended daily amount of salt — about one teaspoon. Edible salt has different forms: unrefined salt (sea salt), refined salt (table salt), and iodized salt (table salt mixed with minute amounts of potassium iodide and sodium iodide to help reduce the chance of iodine deficiency which can cause goiters). It is solid crystals, white, pale pink or light gray in color, normally obtained from sea water or rock deposits. Common table salt is primarily sodium chloride, which acts as a preservative as well as adds flavor. Experts say 75 percent of the sodium that Americans consume comes from packaged foods. Some TV dinners contain several times the recommended daily dose. Other foods high in salt include bread, chicken broth, cheese and chocolate. Too much sodium contributes to high blood pressure, heart disease and stroke. By reducing the amount of sodium to half of current daily intake could save 150,000 lives a year, according to the AMA. “The need for immediate action is clear,” said Stephen Havas, MD, MPH, MS the AMA Vice President for Science, Quality and Public Health. “The deaths attributed to excess salt consumption represents a huge toll — the equivalent of a jumbo jet with more than 400 passengers crashing every day of the years, year after year.” Because of the health concerns attributed to excess salt consumption, the AMA recommends in addition to warning labels on high sodium foods that the FDA revoke salt’s “generally recognized as safe” or GRAS status. They also would like the FDA and manufacturers to work toward a 50 percent reduction in the amount of sodium in processed foods, fast food products and restaurant meals over the next decade. For more information on the status of salt you may visit the US Food and Drug Administration website at www.fda.gov.