How to Correct Low Blood Sodium by Eating High Sodium Foods

Low blood sodium or hyponatremia is a condition in which there is low sodium content, or salt, in the blood, states Medline Plus of the National Institutes of Health. Hyponatremia is usually caused by drinking too much water or not taking in enough salt. Furthermore, hyponatremia is the most comment electrolyte disorder in the United States. The common symptoms associated with this condition include changes in mental status, fatigue, headache, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, and restlessness. Once a doctor determines the cause of the your low blood sodium, he may recommend different foods to help treat this condition. Follow your physician's guidelines to correct your low blood sodium.

Table Salt can help you balance blood sodium. (Image: Jupiterimages/Stockbyte/Getty Images)

Step 1

Add table salt to foods that you eat. Table salt, or sodium chloride, can be lightly added to your foods to help increase the sodium levels in the bloodstream. Although foods may taste salty, your body will likely adjust to the salty flavor of foods and over time the flavor will likely become normal for you. Make frequent doctor's visits to confirm whether the additional sodium is not elevating your blood pressure.

Step 2

Increase the consumption of foods that already contain a lot of salt such as salty crackers, salty peanuts, and salty low-calorie chips. Try to eat salty foods that are low in calories to avoid raising your cholesterol. Also consider using sauces with a high content such as soy sauce.

Step 3

Consider drinking sports beverages when exercising suggests MayoClinic.com. When you sweat, you tend to lose sodium in your sweat, which can cause continually low sodium content in your bloodstream. Therefore, you should choose to drink a sports beverage that has sodium in it after doing strenuous physical activity.

Tip

Ask your doctor before adding salt to foods if you have high blood pressure.