Does a low salt diet help and how much salt is recommended a day?
Posted , 10 users are following.
Hi. I am looking for information on how much a low salt diet can help Meniere’s sufferers. I am wondering what amount of salt was recommended to people by their doctors and if it helped reduce symptoms.
When I look at websites they all seem to recommend between 1 to 1.5g of salt/ sodium but they use salt and sodium interchangeably, and I believe that 2.4 grams of salt contains about 1 gram of sodium.
Does anyone have any accurate information regarding this please? Is it 1 to 1.5g of salt or 1 to 1.5g of sodium? I am enquiring for a friend who has not managed to get a hospital appointment yet, so she has no specialist to ask for guidance.
Thanks in advance for any replies.
0 likes, 18 replies
naomi68931 mistibluey
Posted
I hope your friend gets the help she needs.
mistibluey naomi68931
Posted
Naomi, thanks for replying. Is that 1500mg of salt or sodium? I don't know if you are in America but , in England , our food labels usually show salt rather than sodium.
So glad you found some relief with this diet.
naomi68931 mistibluey
Posted
Pupper mistibluey
Posted
I don't know. Most experts and MD sufferers say low salt helps. I don't see a difference with me. I think the most I can say is that if I'm already feeling uneasy (floaty, full ear feeling etc) and I have a high salt meal, it can push me into a full blown attack.
But who knows. If salt is such a factor, I should be falling all over the place after some of the salt drenched meals I eat.
Sometimes I think the low salt thing is just something the MD community clings to because we're so desperate for a measure of control.
jane51474 mistibluey
Posted
I try to stay under 1500 mg as well as no alcohol
Little sugar and that has helped me virtually eliminate my vertigo attacks or they just "burned out" as my ENT said (but my hearing has gotten worse )but I would rather be hard of hearing vs having vertigo attacks !
mistibluey jane51474
Posted
Sorry you have lost hearing but vertigo is a horrible thing, so I am so glad that you have mostly got on top of your attacks.
jane51474 mistibluey
Posted
amyt86 mistibluey
Posted
I keep to a strict 1000mg sodium daily. I feel this is why my symptoms mostly are minimal to none. I still get tinnitus, and have my "dizzy moments" but not full blown vertigo and vomiting. I also pretty much gave up drinking alcohol. My only vice I have left is my morning coffee. I draw the line there. I'm not giving up coffee!! Lol. Try the diet, it takes a few months to notice effectiveness, but it works! 😉 good luck 👍
mistibluey amyt86
Posted
Sorry everyone about being so picky about this but I am really trying to get to grips with what is meant by a low salt diet for MD and all of this is still very new to me.
I am with you on the coffee! My friend, who probably has MD, has given up all her condiments that she loves, ready meals, bacon and most cheese but she has said that they can prise her morning cup of coffee from her cold dead hands ....... and no sooner!
amyt86 mistibluey
Posted
No. in grams, i do 1 gram daily. Which equals 1000mg. I'm in the United States, we use mg. So you wouldn't want more than 1.5 grams. That's 1500mg. Hope that made sense 😀 Now, where's my coffee, hahaha nobody's taking my coffee from me either! 😂
Tunsc1963 mistibluey
Posted
Hi,
I was recently diagnosed with MD having suffered from tinnitus for over 5 years. I was taking some tablets, which didn't help at all, I read that reducing your salt intake helps so I gave it a go and it seems to have worked for me. I only get the odd attack now and feel much better I use low salt in cooking and have stopped having salt on my food altogether. I just have lots of pepper instead. Give it a go. Good luck
JMJ mistibluey
Posted
The recommendation for MD is 1 to 1.5 g of sodium per day. A teaspoon (6 g) of table salt contains 2.3 g of sodium. As long as I don't add table salt and don't eat too much processed food, staying within the 1 to 1.5 g guideline is pretty easy. It wasn't easy to quit the salt shaker at first, but it definitely paid off. A low sodium diet is key for most MD sufferers. (I use pepper and other spices now, if something needs a little zip.)
I hope this helps!
Take good care!
J-
liz_55304 mistibluey
Posted
naomi68931 liz_55304
Posted
I have found the same thing at restaurants. Sometimes I ask the wait staff to check with the chef as to what can be made on the menu without salt. At home, I have a supply of no salt spices...a company called Mrs. D... makes them. Also, lemon and dill "mimic" the flavor of salt.
jane51474 mistibluey
Posted
I agree that restaurants can accommodate..I usually just get grilled fish/chicken/etc and tell them I can't eat salt please tell chef don't add..I avoid sauces cheese etc and in fast food most grilled sandwiches don't add salt like chicken I avoid processed meats in fast food sodium is so high in these sandwiches ..I