We can find salt in almost every dish. Food will taste bland without it. However, too much salt intake is not good for your health. Besides causing excessive thirst and tissue swelling, consuming too much salt is also related to the risk of cardiovascular diseases such as heart attacks and stroke.

Not only that, according to the results of a recent study published in Science Translational Medicine, researchers found that excessive salt intake can also affect the performance of the immune system against bacteria, especially in the kidneys. Neutrophils, an immune response cell that has an important role in fighting bacterial infections in the kidneys, are known to be less effective in dealing with high salt intake.

In their study, the researchers analysed the relationship between neutrophil performance and high salt intake using mice as a model. The mice are divided into two groups, some of them were given high salt intake while the rest had normal salt intake. When infected with Listeria, mice with high salt intake contained 10-100 times more bacteria than the control group. The condition also makes kidney infections caused by E. coli worse.

As we know, the kidneys play a role in the disposal of excess salt levels in the body through urine. When you consume foods with high salt content, the kidneys will do its job. In the process, levels of steroid hormones (glucocorticoids) and waste products (urea) will increase. Unfortunately, that process can affect the body's immune system performance in fighting bacterial infections.

The researchers have also done the same analysis of humans. The results are the same; those who consume high intake of salt have a less effective immune system. Therefore, limiting daily salt intake (max. 1 tsp/day) can help maintain the performance of the immune system in fighting bacterial infections in the kidneys.

Text by Anggie Triana
Stock photos from Pixabay

Source(s):

• Jobin, K., Stumpf, N.E., Schwab, S., et al (2020). A high-salt diet compromises antibacterial neutrophil responses through hormonal perturbation. Science Translational Medicine, DOI: 10.1126 / scitranslmed.aay3850.
• Medical News Today - Excess dietary salt may be weakened immunity against bacteria in the kidneys. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/too-much-salt-weakens-the-immune-system#Common-bacterial-infections, 7 April 2020.