Recently, the weather has been hot. Mr. Wang, 70, suffered from dizziness and nausea for three days, and later developed symptoms of vomiting. His family thought he had heatstroke and took him to the hospital. At that time, Mr. Wang already had blurred vision and difficulty standing. After examination, doctors found no abnormalities in his heart or other organs, except for low blood pressure, and it was not heatstroke. The final lab test showed that the sodium level in Mr. Wang's blood was significantly lower than normal, and the doctor diagnosed him with hyponatremia.
According to Chen Bing, director of the emergency department at the Second Hospital of Tianjin Medical University, due to improvements in living and working conditions, heatstroke patients are now rare in the summer. However, hyponatremia caused by excessive sweating or excessive salt restriction has become a common condition. Sodium is the main ion for cellular metabolism in the body, and the body's sodium ions are mainly obtained from salt. When the body is low in sodium, blood pressure drops, and symptoms such as dizziness, blurred vision, and nausea appear. At the same time, since sodium ions are the main substance for transmitting nerve and muscle excitability, a lack of sodium can easily lead to symptoms such as fatigue and weakness. In severe cases, it can cause life-threatening symptoms such as confusion, muscle cramps, and shock. People working outdoors, sports enthusiasts, and the elderly are all high-risk groups for hyponatremia in the summer. Especially the elderly, their various functions, including digestion, decline, their appetite significantly decreases, and their salt intake is consequently reduced. Some elderly people also worry that excessive salt will lead to high blood pressure, so they strictly limit their salt intake. However, sodium ions are metabolized quickly by the body and are excreted through urine and sweat glands. This metabolism continues regardless of how much is consumed. Additionally, the elderly often suffer from multiple diseases, and some medications used in treatment, such as diuretics, can affect the concentration of sodium in the blood. Therefore, the elderly are more prone to hyponatremia.
Chen Bing said that the most direct way for the public to supplement sodium is to eat salt. You can appropriately increase the amount of salt when cooking or eat more salty foods. For people working outdoors and sports enthusiasts, it may be necessary to drink water with added salt. Patients with heart disease and high blood pressure, especially the elderly, should avoid excessive salt intake, but they must also prevent hyponatremia caused by salt restriction.