Salt is one of the most popular spice flavorings. No wonder that almost every cuisine of salt contained in it. Salt itself is a mineral composed of sodium chloride (40 percent and 60 percent sodium chloride). Salt is important for the body, but that does not mean the salt should be consumed in excess.
Why does the body need salt?
Sodium chloride ions needed by the body, in small quantities, to regulate water content in it. Sodium is not only needed to help maintain body fluid balance, but also to assist in the transmission of nerve impulses to the brain. In addition, sodium, also plays a role in contraction and relaxation of our muscles. Because liquid sodium can attract like magnets, excessive salt intake would cause retention (detention) in the body of excess water.
The Dangers of excessive salt
having too many minerals can harm our body’s functions. The use of excessive salt can increase the amount of sodium in the body and this can give a serious effect on health. Although salt is used to treat problems such as disease or dysautonomia, the autonomic nervous system damage, but if excessive can cause several health problems such as follows:
1. High blood pressure (hypertension): High salt intake is known to increase blood pressure, which is known to cause several serious diseases like heart disease, paralysis, and receipt. This fact has been proved by the INTERSALT study involving more than 10,000 people in 52 study centers, although the effect (disease) differ from one person to another.
Other evidence of the relationship between high blood pressure with high salt intake was found in medical records since 1994. People from all parts of the face of the earth with all ages can be affected by changes in their salt intake.
2. Cardiovascular Disease: Researchers are working in a large study conducted in 2007 found that patients with high-normal blood pressure significantly benefit by reducing their salt intake, and therefore their risk of suffering from cardiovascular disease decreased by 25 percent to 10 to 15 coming year. Their likelihood of dying from cardiovascular disease was also down by 20 percent.
3. Stroke: Those who consume less salt is less prone to suffering a stroke. In fact, studies say, one gram of reducing salt intake can reduce the risk of experiencing a stroke until the sixth. If reduced by two grams, the risk decreases to one-third, and if the reduced three grams, the possibility of stroke is reduced by half.
4. Some people do not have hypertension although they consume high amounts of salt. However, medical records show, those people have left ventricular hypertrophy or enlargement of muscle tissue that makes the walls of the main heart pumping chamber which can heighten the risk of cardiovascular disease.
5. Fluid retention: The amount of sodium in the body determines the level of fluid in your body if you consume too much salt, the kidneys will be difficult to eliminate excess salt and your body will retain fluid, which sometimes causes swelling around the heart. Doctors recommend reducing salt intake as a treatment for swelling.
6. Digestive system:
High salt intake can affect the digestive system in three ways:
• ulcers (sores) of the stomach and duodenum: According to the American Society for Microbiology Conference, salt interacts with the bacterium Helicobacter pylori (H pylori) and cause ulcers (sores) on the stomach and duodenum. These bacteria (H pylori) were commonly found in many people, of which who have no symptoms. H pyori bacteria is known to cause 80 to 90 percent of all cases of gastric and duodenal ulcers. Therefore, limiting salt intake is a good thing to prevent the formation of ulcers are caused by consuming too much salt.
• Cancer: Cancer of the stomach and gastric cancer associated with high sodium in the body. The evidence for this is found in Japan, where salt consumption is relatively high among the people.
• Reduced Pepsin: Pepsin is a digestive enzyme, and excess salt intake decreases the amount of pepsin in the body. This can affect the digestive system, improve the level of acidity and cause diarrhea. For example, when you add salt to the curd, this leads to fermentation and to form acid in the stomach, and ultimately can affect digestion.
7. Hair Problem: Eating too much salt can cause problems such as hair graying and loss.
8. Increased secretion of bile water: When we eat foods that contain high salt, secretion of bile water will increase, which can increase the density of blood, thus decreasing vitality. It can also cause the lips become dry and bleeding. Doctors advised to reduce salt intake to those who have problems with the skin.
9. Osteoporosis: Excess salt prevents the absorption of calcium in the body, so that DAPT leads to osteoporosis. In a study conducted on postmenopausal women found that women consuming high amounts of salt more to lose more bone mineral than those who do not - consume too much salt.
10. Death: mengasup salt with a high dose in a short time can be fatal. If a person consumes one gram of salt per kilogram of body weight, this can cause the person lost his life.
A person's salt intake needs vary. Recommended amount of slat that is allowed to consume is about 1,500 mg to 2,300 mg per day, depending on the age or health conditions that are owned (such as diabetes, high blood pressure or chronic kidney disease).
The World Health Organization (WHO), recommends the intake of sodium each person is as much as a teaspoon, or about 2.323 mg of sodium or 5 grams of salt each day.
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“Keep in mind that parents who smoke may increase risk of sudden death. But babies who born with low weight is also a very vulnerable group, especially in the first month of life. So it is very important that parents are given information about how to reduce their risk of infant death," says Francine Bates, chief executive of The Foundation for the Study of Infant Deaths (FSID). 
