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>Salt really only tastes good when you need salt. It's satiation depends on the body's current levels/needs. So people who scarf down potato chips by the bag a

>Salt really only tastes good when you need salt. It's satiation depends on the body's current levels/needs. So people who scarf down potato chips by the bag are low on salt?

goldenkey 8y ago
They are eating more than just salt..the fat and carbohydrates in the chips. But yes, people will eat saltier foods more often if they are lacking in salt. There is literally a craving. "A number of hormonal, central nervous, and behavioral systems are engaged when an animal is truly deficient in sodium, which motivates it to search for sodium salts, avidly consume them based on their salt taste, and thereby restore sodium balance" [1] [1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2491403/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2491403/
- rhapsodic 8y ago
  >They are eating more than just salt..the fat and carbohydrates in the chips. But yes, people will eat saltier foods more often if they are lacking in salt. There is literally a craving. Well, yeah, I won't argue with that. I've experienced it myself during intense hangovers. But how do you get from that to "Salt really only tastes good when you need salt"? I love the taste of salt. I would never eat french fries that had no salt on them. Nor would I consider making a margarita without rimming the glass with salt.
  - goldenkey 8y ago
    What I meant is that cravings for sugar and salt modulate taste covariantly. Which you seem to get. None the less, salt still has am enjoyable taste inherently, before being amplified/minified.
    - rhapsodic 8y ago
      > What I meant is that cravings for sugar and salt modulate taste covariantly. Which you seem to get. Uh, yeah, I think a five year old would get that. Things that one craves taste quite good when they finally hit one's taste buds. But this: > Salt really only tastes good when you need salt. Logically implies that when a person does not need salt, salt does not taste good to that person.
      - goldenkey 8y ago
        If a person has high sodium levels, they shouldn't feel attracted to salt. Some people don't listen to their bodies..
        rhapsodic 8y ago
        >If a person has high sodium levels, they shouldn't feel attracted to salt. Some people don't listen to their bodies. Do you have a reference that supports any of this? It runs counter to all of my observations.
        _Tev 8y ago
        Anecdotally: this works for me. It is easy to eat without much salt (and sometimes even avoid salty food) when I don't crave it. I do crave it often though, especially when I exercise more or don't eat much for longer time periods. I also drink a lot of water.
astura 8y ago
Yes... The evidence suggests that humans self regulate sodium levels. https://www.nytimes.com/subscription/multiproduct/lp8XRTS.html?mktgrfr=gw_mob&campaignId=77UQR https://www.nytimes.com/subscription/multiproduct/lp8XRTS.ht... https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/we-eat-a-lot-of-salt-but-scientists-say-there-are-good-reasons-for-that/2015/05/04/69ff7058-c806-11e4-a199-6cb5e63819d2_story.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/we-ea... >People tend to consume about the same amount of sodium no matter where they live, and this amount hasn’t changed much in decades. Those facts hint at the biological basis of our sodium appetite.... “Over the last five decades, salt content of commercial food in our food [in the United States] has gone up. But if you look at people’s 24-hour urinary sodium excretion, you see that the amounts of salt people consume have been constant,” he says. Irrespective of age, sex or race, between 1957 and 2003 Americans have been eating on average 3.5 grams of salt a day. “This suggests that we are somehow regulating the amount of salt we are eating,” Breslin says.... In one of Leshem’s studies, babies who had low concentrations of sodium in their blood in the first weeks of their lives grew up to be teenagers with a penchant for salt, even salt that is seemingly hidden in processed foods. “Even if you can’t taste the salt, apparently your body does. It’s working on an unconscious level to condition a preference for sodium,” Leshem explains.

>Salt really only tastes good when you need salt. It's satiation depends on the body's current levels/needs. So people who scarf down potato chips by the bag are low on salt?

goldenkey 8y ago

They are eating more than just salt..the fat and carbohydrates in the chips. But yes, people will eat saltier foods more often if they are lacking in salt. There is literally a craving. "A number of hormonal, central nervous, and behavioral systems are engaged when an animal is truly deficient in sodium, which motivates it to search for sodium salts, avidly consume them based on their salt taste, and thereby restore sodium balance" [1] [1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2491403/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2491403/

rhapsodic 8y ago
>They are eating more than just salt..the fat and carbohydrates in the chips. But yes, people will eat saltier foods more often if they are lacking in salt. There is literally a craving. Well, yeah, I won't argue with that. I've experienced it myself during intense hangovers. But how do you get from that to "Salt really only tastes good when you need salt"? I love the taste of salt. I would never eat french fries that had no salt on them. Nor would I consider making a margarita without rimming the glass with salt.
- goldenkey 8y ago
  What I meant is that cravings for sugar and salt modulate taste covariantly. Which you seem to get. None the less, salt still has am enjoyable taste inherently, before being amplified/minified.
  - rhapsodic 8y ago
    > What I meant is that cravings for sugar and salt modulate taste covariantly. Which you seem to get. Uh, yeah, I think a five year old would get that. Things that one craves taste quite good when they finally hit one's taste buds. But this: > Salt really only tastes good when you need salt. Logically implies that when a person does not need salt, salt does not taste good to that person.
    - goldenkey 8y ago
      If a person has high sodium levels, they shouldn't feel attracted to salt. Some people don't listen to their bodies..
      - rhapsodic 8y ago
        >If a person has high sodium levels, they shouldn't feel attracted to salt. Some people don't listen to their bodies. Do you have a reference that supports any of this? It runs counter to all of my observations.
        _Tev 8y ago
        Anecdotally: this works for me. It is easy to eat without much salt (and sometimes even avoid salty food) when I don't crave it. I do crave it often though, especially when I exercise more or don't eat much for longer time periods. I also drink a lot of water.

astura 8y ago

Yes... The evidence suggests that humans self regulate sodium levels. https://www.nytimes.com/subscription/multiproduct/lp8XRTS.html?mktgrfr=gw_mob&campaignId=77UQR https://www.nytimes.com/subscription/multiproduct/lp8XRTS.ht... https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/we-eat-a-lot-of-salt-but-scientists-say-there-are-good-reasons-for-that/2015/05/04/69ff7058-c806-11e4-a199-6cb5e63819d2_story.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/we-ea... >People tend to consume about the same amount of sodium no matter where they live, and this amount hasn’t changed much in decades. Those facts hint at the biological basis of our sodium appetite.... “Over the last five decades, salt content of commercial food in our food [in the United States] has gone up. But if you look at people’s 24-hour urinary sodium excretion, you see that the amounts of salt people consume have been constant,” he says. Irrespective of age, sex or race, between 1957 and 2003 Americans have been eating on average 3.5 grams of salt a day. “This suggests that we are somehow regulating the amount of salt we are eating,” Breslin says.... In one of Leshem’s studies, babies who had low concentrations of sodium in their blood in the first weeks of their lives grew up to be teenagers with a penchant for salt, even salt that is seemingly hidden in processed foods. “Even if you can’t taste the salt, apparently your body does. It’s working on an unconscious level to condition a preference for sodium,” Leshem explains.