Low sodium?

[wolfem]

I can't stand this but I consume large amounts of sodium every day and my sodium levels are still low. Does anyone have this issue? I don't have my terminal ileum so that doesn't help. My body is probably trying to compensate somehow and maybe this is the source of all my frustration lately. I have no diarrhea but I do have gastritis.

I'm on zoloft and I read that it can cause low sodium?! I don't need it to be any lower because my bp is only 86 over 54 half the time.

Anyone with these issues?

Thanks

 

[Cat-a-Tonic]

Yes, I have low sodium and low BP too. I'm in remission and my sodium levels are pretty normal nowadays, but when I flare my sodium drops like a brick. And even in remission, my BP is usually 90/60. I got into a car accident the other week and the stress of it drove my BP up to something like 105/70 and I was like, wow, that's high! And the nurse was like, no, that's still low. Ha ha. But yes, I feel for you, my BP is always low and my sodium is often low, and they seem to be related - when my sodium drops, my BP drops too. Back before I was in remission, I could go through 2 or 3 big bags of potato chips per week and my sodium was still low. And I do have my TI, I haven't had any surgeries. I'm not fully diagnosed yet so I'm hoping to figure out more about the sodium and BP issues when I do get a proper diagnosis. Anyway, I know that doesn't help much, but you are not alone in having these issues.

Oh, and one thing I've found that is really high in sodium is soy sauce! Just a teaspoon or two seems to get my BP up when it's really low.

 

[Aura]

I have low sodium too, and when I told my GI that I was trying to increase my salt intake he said that was the wrong thing to do, it would make it worse.

So now I have a low but not getting lower sodium level with my standard diet and not trying to do anything about. Yes to being in active flare in small bowel. I normally have high BP but currently it is low for me at 120/70.

Most of my other bloods are screwed up as well at the moment - due to flare.

 

[Beach]

Well, I've always had low blood pressure and a low resting heart rate. At one time recall even having a heart rate in the lower 30 beats per minute. That is when my stomach condition was at its worst. Since feeling better my resting heart rate has increased.

Overall though I don't believe that sodium effects BP all that much for most people. There have been a few studies on this of late.

"Still Another A-Salt On Science"

http://www.fathead-movie.com/index.php/2011/08/23/still-another-a-salt-on-science/

snippets:

...A recent article published in Scientific American titled It’s Time to End the War on Salt reported on a meta-analysis of salt-restriction studies by the Cochrane Collaboration. Here’s what they found:

Intersalt, a large study published in 1988, compared sodium intake with blood pressure in subjects from 52 international research centers and found no relationship between sodium intake and the prevalence of hypertension. In fact, the population that ate the most salt, about 14 grams a day, had a lower median blood pressure than the population that ate the least, about 7.2 grams a day....

&

...Dr. O’Keefe’s observation is just that – an observation. So what do the clinical trials tell us about salt intake and blood pressure?

Hypertension is defined as blood pressure that’s more than 20 points above normal. If salt causes hypertension, then drastically restricting salt intake – all by itself – should produce a drop in blood pressure of 20 points or so. But that simply isn’t the case. In the section of my speech that Dr. O’Keefe didn’t like, I recounted the results of a large clinical study in which researchers had the study subjects reduce their salt intake by 75%. That led to a whopping three-point drop in blood pressure on average.

Other clinical studies have produced similar (or even less-impressive) results. Here’s more from the Scientific American article:

Over the long-term, low-salt diets, compared to normal diets, decreased systolic blood pressure (the top number in the blood pressure ratio) in healthy people by 1.1 millimeters of mercury (mmHg) and diastolic blood pressure (the bottom number) by 0.6 mmHg. That is like going from 120/80 to 119/79. The review concluded that “intensive interventions, unsuited to primary care or population prevention programs, provide only minimal reductions in blood pressure during long-term trials.” A 2003 Cochrane review of 57 shorter-term trials similarly concluded that “there is little evidence for long-term benefit from reducing salt intake.”

 

[wolfem]

Gees. I had been reducing my salt intake but then I get a lot of other strange symptoms so I'm not sure what to do... salt seems to raise my bp drastically to 105 over 61. If we don't have our terminal ileum we are supposed to consume more salt? Oye. Still, not sure how to balance it all out. At least I'm not the only one One of my doctors told me that gastritis may push on a nerve and cause lower blood pressure. I thought that was interesting.

Thanks for the tips! Not sure I can have soy sauce but sounds delicious. lol

@catatonic- hope you get a diagnosis soon.

 

[Cat-a-Tonic]

Thanks Wolfem. And yeah, soy sauce is pretty disgusting to eat it just by itself, but it really does help me feel better. 105/61 is still a pretty low BP, 120/80 is considered "normal" and I don't think mine has ever been that high. So I wouldn't worry too much if sodium makes your BP rise a bit, so long as it still stays within the low/normal range.

And that's very interesting about the gastritis pushing on a nerve, I get attacks of gastritis when my GERD acts up. I'll make sure to pay close attention to my BP the next time my GERD & gastritis are acting up.

 

[wolfem]

Hey cat-a-tonic. My bp went up a little after lowering the zoloft. I think I'm allergic to that med. Anyway, thanks for your response

I read online that athletes have low bp with normal heart rate because their hearts don't have to work as hard. I was at one point, very athletic so it could be a combo.

 

[Catherine]

Has your weight, low body weight is related to low bp. Sarah is 85/45.

 

[rxgirl]

Zoloft can cause hyponatremia (low sodium). Actually all SSRI antidepressants can. How low is your sodium?

 

[wolfem]

Oye. Stupid SSRIs. To be honest, I don't like them. I'm on a lower dose (the lowest) and my bp went back up to 91 over 70. My doctor says my sodium is always on the very edge of the the range but its actually lower because I'm usually dehydrated (body trying to compensate for lower salt absorption). Two of my doctors said that. I'm actually hyponatremic and hypokalemic at times. I just can't find a balance. Anyhow, SSRI probably made things a little worse for me. :shifty-t:

I think I just need a balance of electrolytes and trace minerals. I bought this water called Aquahydrate Enhanced pH9. Has anyone heard or tried this? I felt a whole lot better drinking it.