Hi – new and testing recipes before I ‘go for it’.

I rarely if ever eat salt and never cook with it either so it has come as a surprise to find most of the recipes ask for salt, and not an insignificant amount either (IMHO).

Having just had results of a blood test back showing raised cholesterol (both good and bad match each other in raised levels) and being shown to be low in vit B12 and surprisingly vit D (I’m a serious outdoor girl!) I’m concerned that the sudden additions of, for my body, high levels of salt will do more harm than good.

Am I being overly sensitive to the levels of salt in this diet?

Hi Denise. Unless you are hypertensive (and even then its controversial) I wouldn’t worry about the salt. The link between salt and cardio-vascular disease, much like the link between raised cholesterol and health, is probably (almost definitely) over-stated. As for vit-D almost everyone in England is deficient. Take a high-quality 400iu product from a reputable supplier

Some salt/ sodium is essential for health. If you have previously been eating from all the food groups you may have taken more than you think: salt is in cheeses and seafood for example. It is also in many flavourings/ condiments such as soy sauce and stock cubes. Bear in mind sodium and other minerals are lost in sweat (outdoorsy).

Having said that a B12 and D deficiency might suggest you have not had a properly balanced and varied diet, perhaps not enough oily fish, organic eggs?

The initial stages of the CG diet are elimination, which would not be ideal when you are already deficient in some nutrients. IMO check with your doctor or dietician first.

The omega-3 fatty acids in oily fish are important in healthy cholesterol levels, and it is also the main dietary source of vitamin D.

The conversion of vitamin D by UVB light depends on the latitude, time of day and time of year. In the UK we need modest sunlight exposure in the middle of the day. Even then we can’t make vitamin D for several months (Oct to April?) so need to take it in food.

HTH!

When substantially reducing carbs we can get dehydrated, hence it is common to see lower carb recipes with more salt or other minerals. This is thought to help the body retain water. This should be somewhat balanced out by the potassium in the seven to nine servings of veg and fruit.

Reduced sodium alternatives to table salt include LoSalt (mix of sodium and potassium), sea salt (high in sodium but source of other minerals), celery salt (1/4 dried celery or celery seed), stock cubes/ stock pots/ bouillon powder, dried sea vegetables/ seaweeds.

Thanks for the reply.

Both of the answers make sense and I’m in the ‘can I cook’ these before trying the two week plan before committing to the two weeks. I may hold off that and just continue recipe testing whsle waiting for the medial problem to resolve.

I am under Drs consult at moment re vitamins (went in for facial numbness and came out with blood tests first). I’m only ‘just about’ in the normal range, but right at their lower limits for the 3 vitamins. If it wasn’t for the medical issue he’d have just sent me home with multi Vit tablets instead I had a B12 injection to trial first before adding in other vitamin supplements. Vit D will be the last addition to the treatment plan at moment.

Oily fish is not on my plate enough – much more of a white fish girl which will have to change, but at least my good fats/lipids were as high as the bad ones.