Anyone know if you really are salt sensitive? - High & Low Blood Pressure Message Board

Uff-Da! · 11-21-2004, 08:54 AM

Doctors automatically suggest that anyone with high blood pressure cut down drastically on salt. But I have read that only somewhere between ten and twenty percent of people are even salt sensitive. Now if I knew for certain that I was one of those ten to twenty percent, it wouldn't bother me so much to cut out my beloved salt. But I can't help but think I just don't want to sacrifice that much in taste for the next ten, twenty, forty years if I'm not one of those affected by it anyway.

But how can one really test if one is salt sensitive or not? My doctor said try taking blood pressure readings after eating salt and without salt. But it just isn't that easy! For me, and I'm sure for many others, differences in stress and other factors would throw off those readings completely. I'd probably have to go at least a month of no salt, then a month on exactly the same meals and snacks but with salt to get enough readings to average out other factors and make it at all meaningful.

Has anyone had any experience in determining if you really are salt sensitive?

Lenin · 11-21-2004, 11:43 AM

Hi Uff-Da,

GREAT topic!

Funny you should bring that up- it's been on my mind too. I've been reading that as many as 1/3 of people are low-renin hypertensives. For this lot, the drugs that work by lowering renin are not useful. That includes beta-blockers, ACE inhibitors and ARBS.

This minority owes hypertension to salt-sensitivity and so diuretics (and maybe calcium-channel blockers <not sure>) are the way to go, and of course the horrid and difficult no-salt diet.

Obviously, if one's goal is monotherapy (one drug rather than 16

), one MUST determine what's causing the hypertension.

Some clues I am putting together:
1. I retain MUCH more water weight than other people from a big salty day...as much as 7 pounds.
2. My BP soars when my weight does.
3. Thiazide diuretics lower my BP best and give brisk diuresis WHEN I'm full of water (not otherwise)
4. ARB's don't do much for me.

I've started experimenting first with a diuretic...then I'll do only an ARB.

I'll keep you posted, but things are pointing me towards being in the minority.

There's some good stuff on the net about non-renin hypertension.

Palamedes · 11-21-2004, 06:58 PM

Keep in mind that for the other 2/3 that are high renin, ACE inhibitors and ARBs will block the renin-angiotensin system - essentially turning them into low-renin salt senisitive individuals as well.

Pal

Uff-Da! · 11-21-2004, 07:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Palamedes

Keep in mind that for the other 2/3 that are high renin, ACE inhibitors and ARBs will block the renin-angiotensin system - essentially turning them into low-renin salt senisitive individuals as well.

Pal

I'm on Lisinopril. So, if I understand you correctly, on that medication I'm salt-sensitive whether I was originally or not. No! I am not liking this! I was hoping for a way out!

Lenin · 11-22-2004, 06:08 AM

Pal,

So to follow your statement to it's logical conclusion, treating the angiotensin II-renin (and ultimately aldosterone) system really benefits nobody if the 2/3 high renin hypertensitives become low-renin salt sensistives.

Thus only the low renin, sodium sensitives have any hope for monotherapy.
Do I read you correctly?

Do you have any guesses on what the mechanism might be for hypertension in the "salt-sensitives": genetic, pituitary, adrenal, other

?