Wine And Sea Salt: Not As Good for You As You Think
Sometimes health news makes us feel better about some not-so-seemingly healthy habits. For example, wine, in moderation, is often touted as a heart-healthy beverage, making it easier to justify having a glass with your meal.
However, how careful are you when you pour your nightly glass of wine? Do you use a small wine glass or is it one of those mammoth-sized ones that are everywhere now? Turns out that wine can be healthy - if you don't drink too much. Sure, sure, we all know that right? Well, it turns out, we don't.
What about sea salt? Switching to a more natural, less processed form of salt must be better for our health. Meaning, we can sub in sea salt wherever we typically use table salt and feel better about our choice - or so we thought.
A recent survey conducted by the American Heart Association (AHA) shows that we are more confused than ever. According to the AHA, regular consumption of alcohol can increase your blood pressure, contribute to high triglycerides, heart attacks and strokes.
And, while it is well-documented that limited wine consumption is good for the heart, only 30% of the people surveyed were familiar with the recommended daily limits of alcohol to ensure that is it helpful and not hurtful to heart health.
With salt, the survey showed we are even more confused. Sixty-one percent of people surveyed believed that sea salt was a low-sodium alternative to table salt. This is completely false. Sea salt has the same amount of sodium as regular table salt.
So remember, when it comes to your health, enjoy your wine (but limit the daily amounts to 4 ounces for women and 8 ounces for men) and limit your salt intake as much as possible. Almost 75% of the sodium we consume comes from processed foods, so adding additional sea (or table) salt to your meals isn't doing you or your heart any favors.
Image courtesy of slashfood.com.
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