Caveman Diet Part 2: Sodium and Potassium

The caveman diet does not include salt, not added salt at least. To see how this affects our body, we need to talk about electrolytes.

Electrolytes

Electrolytes (or ionic solutions) are solutions containing ions such as sodium or potassium. These solutions are capable of carrying and transferring electric charge which is vital in many functions of the human body. They play a very important role in nerve, muscle and heart function. For example, when we have too much or too little of one kind of electrolyte, the heart responds accordingly and can develop an irregular beat. Another, too common problem is that of hyponatremia which can happen when somebody drinks too much water. This is a serious condition that can be fatal and is the result of low sodium levels.

Added Salt and Processed Foods

Ok, it’s pretty easy to see that electrolyte levels are vital to many systems in the body. We need to keep a good balance, not too much and not too little of any one electrolyte. This is interesting from the point of view of the caveman diet because there is no added salt. That means your sodium levels are going to fall. But is that good or bad? Well, the average diet today contains too much sodium and it may surprise you to know that, according to the Mayo Clinic, only 11% of the average American’s sodium intake is from added salt. 77% of sodium intake comes from processed food since manufacturers often include lots of salt to make foods taste better or to help preserve them. Most doctors recommend a daily intake of 1.5-2.4g of sodium but the average intake is estimated to be around 4g probably because of high consumption of these processed foods with hidden salt levels.

Sodium Potassium Balance

Proponents of the caveman diet point to a better sodium to potassium balance than the modern diet. They have a good point. It’s interesting to see that according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, we should lower sodium intake and increase potassium intake just like in the caveman diet. They say the following:

Key Recommendations

• Consume less than 2,300 mg (approximately 1 tsp of salt) of sodium per day.
• Choose and prepare foods with little salt. At the same time, consume potassium-rich foods, such as fruits and vegetables.

Key Recommendations for Specific Population Groups

• Individuals with hypertension, blacks, and middle-aged and older adults. Aim to consume no more than 1,500 mg of sodium per day, and meet the potassium recommendation (4,700 mg/day) with food.

They go on to say:

Reducing salt intake is one of several ways that people may lower their blood pressure. The relationship between salt intake and blood pressure is direct and progressive without an apparent threshold. On average, the higher a person’s salt intake, the higher the blood pressure. Reducing blood pressure, ideally to the normal range, reduces the risk of stroke, heart disease, heart failure, and kidney disease.

Another dietary measure to lower blood pressure is to consume a diet rich in potassium. A potassium-rich diet also blunts the effects of salt on blood pressure, may reduce the risk of developing kidney stones, and possibly decrease bone loss with age.

The link between high blood pressure and sodium is now well known and high blood pressure is also a cause of heart disease and stroke. High sodium intake is part of the problem and low potassium intake is another. It is this balance between the two that we need in order to maintain good health.

Good Sources of Potassium

So, lowering sodium levels seems like a good idea for most of us and increasing potassium from the average of around 2.5g to around 5g would also benefit health. It seems that the caveman diet gets this right with more potassium than sodium, completely inverted from the average modern diet.

Good sources of potassium include most fruits, vegetables, nuts and white meats including oranges, broccoli, bananas, peaches and cabbage. Again, this fits in perfectly with the caveman diet. Note that potatoes are an excellent source of potassium but are avoided in the strict caveman diet.

Caveman Gets it Right

In the previous part, I said that the evolution arguments are too weak to be considered evidence either way that the caveman diet is what we are “meant” to eat. It really is much better to look at health and nutrition and in this part, I think it’s as clear as day that the caveman diet easily beats a modern diet full of added salt and processed foods when we consider electrolyte levels. The modern diet has it all wrong with more sodium than potassium when all the health authorities are telling us that we need more potassium and less sodium. This is made more difficult to achieve since many convenience or processed foods actually provide us with the majority of our bloated sodium intake. The only way around this is to avoid processed foods and get back to a more natural diet. This still doesn’t necessarily mean that the full caveman diet is the best option for everybody but certainly in this respect, it gets it right and also backs up its claims to help avoid certain diseases of longevity. It does this not because of the guesswork of ancient times but through hard modern science.

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