Bloomberg obssessed with what we eat. I guess no more pretzels

Hey, gotta give Bloomie this: he did teach us all the proper way to shoot smack.

I'm all for a healthy diet, but kinda reminds me of Giuliani's last term when he started issuing fines for quality of life crimes.

I appreciate what Bloomies' trying to do. I agree with the transfats because they are hidden & people don't know how bad they are & it costs just a bit more $ to use a better fat. But, IMO, the "how to shoot up" thing goes too far. Unintended consequences of the well intentioned nanny statism.

Transfats were a special case in my humble opinion dwell. Until recently majority of the public was unaware of how bad they are. The education campaign was good.

The insanity has got to stop.

Salt is necessary for biological function.

"The lowest sodium intakes — the 1500 mg/day that the New York health department says everyone should be eating — were associated with an 80% higher risk of cardiovascular disease compared with those consuming the highest salt diets. The lowest salt intakes were also associated with a 24% higher risk of all-cause mortality. Clearly, low-salt diets are not associated with lower risks for the general population. Conversely, the Albert Einstein researchers were unable to show that even the highest salt intakes were associated with increased risks for developing cardiovascular disease or high blood pressure or for premature death."

http://junkfoodscience.blogspot.com/2009/01/who-decides-what-you-can-eat-sating-on.html

Conversely, salt is important for the removal of acidity from your brain cells.

Kidneys will not work correctly without salt.

Depression and emotional problems are greatly relieved by taking more salt, drinking plain water, eating correctly and walking.

Bladder control problems and unintentional urine leakage could be helped by adding more salt into your diet.

Diabetics can bring down their blood sugar levels and reduce their need for insulin by taking salt.

Irregular heartbeats may be stopped by putting a pinch of salt on the end of your tongue and letting it dissolve.

Our digestive system requires salt to properly absorb the food we eat.

Asthma, emphysema and cystic fibrosis suffers can get rid of mucus and phlegm in the lungs by using salt and drinking plain water.

Gout symptoms can be prevented by using salt.

If you get muscle cramps (Charlie horses, etc.), salt may relieve them. Try putting a pinch of salt on the end of your tongue and let it dissolve.

Bones get their hardness from salt, not calcium. Read "Calcium 'Milk' Scandal".

Osteoporosis is mainly caused by not taking enough salt and water everyday.

Salt is essential for preventing varicose and spider veins on the legs.

Many erectile problems can be alleviated by eating more salt and drinking more plain water.

Salt may help reduce a double chin. The salivary glands in your mouth sense your body is low on salt and produce more saliva. Over time, this increased production of saliva causes the saliva glands to “leak” in the area under your chin.

Taking salt and drinking plain water before exercising will help you to breathe better and sweat less.

Because there is potassium in almost everything we eat, salt needs to be added to our food. This will allow our body to maintain the proper balance of water between the inside and outside oceans of water in our cells.

In a study of almost 3,000 men that had high blood pressure, the men on a low-salt diet had a 430% increase in heart attacks when compared to the men who ate a high-salt diet.

Low-salt diets have also been shown to increase total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol levels.

so...you figure that junkfoodscience knows more on this subject than the mayo clinic?

Will aboutready's trips to McDonalds for the Filet o Fish still be allowed by Bloomberg?

"so...you figure that junkfoodscience knows more on this subject than the mayo clinic?"

Given that the Mayo Clinic is staffed with so-called "experts" who time and again have proven to be connected to both the food industry and Big Pharma, I think that "junkfoodscience" at least can give as a more honest picture.

so...you figure the mayo clinic is advocating careful monitoring of salt intake in order to:

1.. help the food industry?
2.. help big pharma?

how?

wouldn't it seem like the exact opposite?

always questions and few answers. why?

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Most Americans consume too much salt, contributing to the risk of heart disease and stroke, reports the September issue of Mayo Clinic Women's HealthSource.

"Many people probably are aware that too much sodium can cause or aggravate hypertension, a major risk factor for heart disease and stroke," says Gary Schwartz, M.D., a Mayo Clinic hypertension specialist. "They may be less aware that a high sodium intake can increase the risk of stroke even without an increase in blood pressure."

High sodium intake also can increase the risk of osteoporosis and kidney stones. Studies have shown a relationship between a high-salt diet and stomach cancer.

How much salt is too much? A report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends a maximum of 1,500 milligrams (mg) daily for most Americans.

"so...you figure the mayo clinic is advocating careful monitoring of salt intake in order to:

1.. help the food industry?
2.. help big pharma?

how?

wouldn't it seem like the exact opposite?"

***

You'd think. But given the health problems that low-salt diets have been proven to cause -- most notably high cholesterol -- is it really a stretch that those members of the Mayo Clinic who sit on the boards of directors of Pfizer (Lipitor), AstraZenica (Crestor), and Merck (Vytorin) might actually have a vested interest in increasing the number of people on their snake oil?

so...according to you...one of the risk factors for high cholesterol is limited salt intake?

"High sodium intake also can increase the risk of osteoporosis and kidney stones."

That's totally, absolutely wrong. Osteoporosis is caused by too LITTLE salt, as is abnormal kidney function (which leads to kidney stones).

so...would having a lot of salt prevent high cholesterol? according to you?

"so...according to you...one of the risk factors for high cholesterol is limited salt intake?"

No.

According to researchers who have no vested interest in putting people on cholesterol-lowering drugs, limited salt intake is one of the risk factors for high cholesterol.

any connection between salt and high blood pressure?

questions, questions

For some people yes, for others, no.

matt: can you speak for yourself?

so, kind of maybe yes..maybe no?

hostile questions, hostile questions

This is all really interesting but why is it on a real estate site instead of nutrition site?

My friend put a saltwater pool in her backyard and the salt corroded the stone edging. Salt is bad.

Bloomberg is doing a great job bringing this to the fore. While talk is cheap (SE posters take note), he is willing to take action. Breakfast sandwiches at several fast food chains top off with over 2200 mg sodium. Several burritos from Taco Bell have over 2100 mg. At the same time, The American Heart Association Recommendation states: "Aim to eat less than 2,300 mg of sodium per day. Some people — African Americans, middle-aged and older adults, and people with high blood pressure — need less than 1,500 mg per day." Great to have an elected leader willing to LEAD.

sjtmd, I would counter that Taco bell should not be an everyday food. Hagen Dazs is healthy if you eat it once in a while. It's not healthy if you eat it seven days a week.