Word: saltingly
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Each species of cone snail produces a unique venom that contains between 50 and 200 pharmacologically active peptides known as conotoxins. The most advanced conotoxin-derived drug in development is Elan Corp.'s Ziconotide, a nonaddictive treatment for severe chronic pain that is awaiting FDA approval. Cognetix, based in Salt Lake City, Utah, recently started clinical trials on a possible epilepsy treatment. Also in the works: potential therapies for schizophrenia, stroke and Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases...
Doctors have long known that cutting back on salt or sodium can help lower blood pressure in folks with hypertension, a silent condition that increases the risk of heart attack and stroke. What hasn't been so clear is whether reducing the amount of sodium in the diet will benefit those whose blood pressure is normal. Now comes word that restricting salt can indeed lower normal blood-pressure levels. Though the effect isn't as great, it's still important, according to a study published in last week's New England Journal of Medicine...
...this significant? Public-health experts estimate that Americans consume, on average, about 3,500 mg of sodium--equal to about 9 grams of salt--each day. Current guidelines recommend consuming no more than 2,300 mg of sodium--about 6 grams of salt--daily. It's not that we're that heavy-handed with the saltshaker. Most of our dietary sodium is added during food processing. To get down to 1,200 mg, you'd have to forgo most prepared foods, take-out deliveries and restaurant meals...
...periodically comes home late from work too pooped to do anything but dial up some sodium-packed Thai food, I know that eating home-cooked meals all the time is not terribly practical. But with a little planning and some self-awareness, you can work around those occasional slips. Salt is, after all, essential to life. The trick is to adopt an overall pattern of healthy living and not depend on any one thing to make up for bad habits...
...attention to how much salt you're eating, but don't forget to make fruits, vegetables and whole grains a larger part of your diet. They'll help lower your cholesterol levels as well as your blood pressure. Be sure to drink alcohol moderately, if at all. Losing weight--even just 10 lbs.--and exercising at least 30 minutes most days of the week can also have a marked effect on blood pressure...